Former Mighty Mussel JP Smith named recipient of the Harmon Killebrew Award
Former Fort Myers Mighty Mussels’ first baseman JP Smith has been named the club’s 2026 recipient of the Harmon Killebrew Award.
An annual award that was created in 2011 to honor the passing of Twins’ legend Harmon Killebrew, the Killebrew Award, goes to one Minor League player from each of the Twins’ full-season affiliates for outstanding community service. Recipients are nominated by the general managers of each minor league club.
Smith set the Mussels’ era (since 2020) record for home runs in a single-season when he crushed his 15th bomb of the campaign, a walk-off shot against Palm Beach on Aug. 1. He was then promoted to High-A Cedar Rapids on Aug. 3.
“JP was a fantastic representative of our organization during his year in a Mighty Mussels’ uniform. In addition to being a leader in the clubhouse, he was always generous with his time with fans at the ballpark and members of our Southwest Florida community,” Mighty Mussels Co-President and General Manager Judd Loveland said. “He had a record setting season on the diamond before being promoted to High-A and we are sure he will continue to be a good steward of the Minnesota Twins organization as he climbs the minor league ranks and chases his goal of playing at Target Field.”
The Twins’ 17th round selection out of Sacramento State, Smith exploded onto the scene when he debuted in August 2025, immediately earning Florida State League Player of the Week honors. This season, JP hit .221/.342/.426 with a .768 OPS in 72 games prior to his promotion.
Through 26 games with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, Smith is hitting .284 with three doubles, six home runs and 16 RBI, with a .952 OPS.
For more about the team, visit mlb.com/milb/cedar-rapids.
Previous Winners (in the Mighty Mussels’ era) include Eli Jones (2025), Maddux Houghton (2024), Jackson Hicks (2023), Noah Cardenas (2022), Jeferson Morales (2021).