The Cedar Rapids Kernels are an exciting part of the Midwest League, providing Minor League Baseball to fans in Iowa. As the High-A affiliate for the Minnesota Twins, they have been a source of entertainment and community pride since their founding in 1962.
Home games take place at Veterans Memorial Stadium where loyal supporters cheer on their team through each inning. With passionate ownership from Cedar Rapids Ball Club Inc., there is no better way to show your support than by attending one of these thrilling events.
1. Jake Mauer
Jake Mauer is an infielder for the Minnesota Twins. He was drafted by the Twins in 1998 and has been with them since. In 2009, he won a Silver Slugger Award as best fielder in baseball.
In 2013, Mauer led all major league players with a .927 fielding percentage at first base. Mauer also won a Gold Glove Award that year and has been one of the top defenders in MLB ever since then.
On January 14th, 2017, Jake announced his retirement from professional baseball after 16 seasons with the Twins organization including nine seasons as their captain/outfielder Currently working on his second book about his life and career Jake Mauer is a talented and well-respected baseball player.
He has had a long and successful career, both in the United States and internationally. Jake Mauer is known for his strong throwing arm, which he uses to hit high quality balls into the gaps.
He also has excellent batting skills, which help him score many runs for his team. Jake Mauer is an extremely hard worker, who always puts in 100% effort on the field.
He is highly respected by his teammates and fans alike, due to his dedication to playing the game at its highest level. In addition to being a great ballplayer, Jake Mauer is also an honest person with good values.
2. Brian Dinkelman
Brian Dinkelman was born in Centralia, Illinois on November 10, 1983. He played college baseball at the University of Illinois and was a two-time All American.
After graduating from college, he signed with the Boston Red Sox as an undrafted free agent and made his major league debut in 2006. He spent six seasons with the Red Sox before signing with the Detroit Tigers in 2012.
In 2018, he led all American second basemen in assists (66) and finished second in batting average (.287). Brian is married to Kerry Dinkelman and they have three children: daughters Sierra and Makayla and son Braxton.
Brian Dinkelman is a right-handed pitcher who made his MLB debut for the Minnesota Twins in 2011. Brian Dinkelman has appeared in 25 games over two seasons with the Twins and has a record of 9-8 with a 3.89 ERA.
Brian Dinkelman throws five pitches, including a fastball, slider, changeup and curveball which he uses to get batters out.
Brian Dinkelman was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in 2007 but did not sign and instead attended college at South Dakota State University where he played baseball for the Jackrabbits from 2006 to 2009.
In 2010, Brian signed with the Hanshin Tigers of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball League (NPB) where he led all pitchers in wins (14), strikeouts (189) and innings pitched (269).
After playing one season in NPB, Dinkelman returned to America and signed with the Twins on December 16th, 2010.
3. Aaron Sabato
Sabato is a political analyst and pollster who has been working in the field for over three decades. In 1991, he founded The Sabato Group, which provides election predictions and analysis to clients nationwide.
He was also a co-founder of Crystal Ball Politics, an influential outlet that focused on analyzing congressional races and presidential elections.
As of 2019, Sabato is the director of University of Virginia's Center for Politics and Public Affairs where he oversees research projects on UVA students as well as professors from other universities around Charlottesville VA area.
His work has been featured by various media outlets including MSNBC, The Washington Post, TIME Magazine among others Sabato is a young, up and coming first baseman who is rapidly climbing the ranks of baseball.
Sabato was drafted by the Cleveland Indians in the 3rd round of the 2018 MLB Draft. Aaron has an impressive batting average of .286 and a slugging percentage of .506 on the season thus far with Single-A Lake County Storm.
He will look to continue his success when he joins Double-A Akron RubberDucks later this year. With his power and good plate discipline, Aaron Sabato looks like one to watch for future seasons in professional baseball.
Final Words
The Cedar Rapids Kernels are an exciting part of the Midwest League, providing Minor League Baseball fans with a glimpse into the future stars of the game.
Some of the best players to ever don a Kernels uniform include Mike Piazza, Albert Pujols, and Troy Glaus.
