All you really need to know about Nelson Cruz as a person was on display for the world to see as soon as he was named the winner of the 2020 Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award on Sunday night as part of ESPN's broadcast of the ESPY Awards.

The 39-year-old put his head in his hands, tears welling up in his eyes. And immediately, his mind turned to how that recognition and the associated $100,000 grant towards his Boomstick23 Foundation would help his community of Las Matas de Santa Cruz.

"That definitely will help a lot of people," Cruz said through the tears. "So, from the bottom of my heart, my family, my foundation and my hometown, thank you."

There are countless people in that small town, deep in the northwestern corner of the Dominican Republic, that owe their health and livelihood in part to Cruz, one of the town's most prominent sons. Reached on the phone Monday afternoon, the Twins' designated hitter marveled at how much the small town about 30 kilometers from the border with Haiti had changed since his childhood.

He grew up without streets or reliable access to electricity or running water, with no fire services, no ambulance, no significant security and policing infrastructure. Cruz has devoted his professional life to developing those services and ensuring that future generations in his community will be better equipped to live healthy, successful lives.

"Just to be recognized was really remarkable for me," Cruz said. "All the work that you do, you don't do it expecting to be recognized. I never did it to be recognized. I just thought it was the right thing to do. So many emotional things were crossing through my mind when they told me that I won. Taking it all in, I lost it. It was really touching for me and my family, and all of those emotions just show up in that moment."

Cruz rose to the top of a decorated group of finalists that also included Maya Moore of the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx, former Minnesota Timberwolves and current Cleveland Cavaliers star Kevin Love of the NBA, brothers Jason and Devin McCourty of the NFL and Titus O'Neill of the WWE. All of the other finalists will receive $25,000 grants to direct towards their associated charities.

According to ESPN's release, the Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award is given to an athlete "whose continuous, demonstrated leadership has created a measured positive impact on their community through sports. The candidate must embrace the core principles that Muhammad Ali embodied so well, including confidence, conviction, dedication, giving and respect."

"Over our sixty years in Minnesota, the Twins have been incredibly blessed to have had so many great players who happen to be even better people -- Nelson Cruz is a shining example," Twins president Dave St. Peter said in a statement. "Through his work in the Dominican Republic, Twins Territory and beyond, Nellie continues to touch countless lives. He lives our organizational pillars of passion, hustle, heart and fun each and every day, and we are incredibly proud to have Nelson Cruz as part of our Minnesota Twins family."

As Cruz explained in a video, one of his friends lost a house to a fire several years ago because the community didn't have a fire engine, and when Cruz went to Spring Training the following year, he asked about how he could acquire and donate one.

That fire truck made it to Las Matas de Santa Cruz -- as did an ambulance, motorcycles and a truck for the town's police officers and a new medical clinic and police station to house those services. That goes alongside all the wheelchairs, crutches, walkers and canes that he has provided for elderly and disabled residents, as well as the annual visits from dentists and optometrists that he organizes at his local clinic.

"I feel elated when people stop me and tell me, 'Thank you,' because of the ambulance that I bought," Cruz said. "One of the greatest gifts is life, and nothing is more important than saving people's lives. We take that for granted in the States because we make a call and the ambulance is there right away. Unfortunately, that's not the case in the Dominican. For me to be able to bring that to my town is just something that I felt was really important."

More recently, his Boomstick23 Foundation, established in 2016, has focused on elevating opportunities in sports and education for the youth of Las Matas de Santa Cruz, with the goal of providing professional training and education for young athletes in the community who have had to cut their schooling short due to their athletic pursuits. Cruz hopes to use the funds from the $100,000 grant in part towards the construction of a computing center that will house those efforts. Cruz expects construction to get underway in the next few months following some pandemic-related delays.

Cruz also plans to work with the Esperanza International to invest in small businesses and entrepreneurs in the Las Matas de Santa Cruz area. Cruz said that he and the foundation have identified businesses targeted for growth, and they plan to offer loans and follow those businesses in their development.

"Unfortunately, my country is not the richest one, so we have so many needs," Cruz said. "I feel like it opens doors to reach those that have a lot of needs. It's just something that I feel that I have to do. I can reach and open some doors to provide the help that we need here."

The 15-year MLB veteran also worked with other Dominican baseball players to provide food and equipment to families and hospitals in need during the worst of the pandemic in their country.

Cruz previously earned the 2019 Carl R. Pohlad Award for Community Service as part of the Twins' annual Diamond Awards organizational celebrations. He was also the Mariners' nominee for the 2018 Roberto Clemente Award, which recognizes the player in baseball who best represents the game of baseball through his character and contributions on and off the field.