A sawmill for sawing a log segment in two through the core thereof and a method of sawing a log in half through the core thereof. The sawmill includes a log feed conveyor configured for feeding logs to a band saw and a log positioning rig, the band saw being disposed on a movable carriage of a fixed frame, the band saw being configured for sawing a log from a first end of the log to a distal end of the log. The log positioning rig has a reciprocating cradle having a plurality of spaced-apart cradle segments. The reciprocating cradle is pivotally attached to the fixed frame, and is configured for raising or lowering the first end of the log to align the central core of the log along the length of the log with a blade of the band saw.