Bianca Smith Becoming First Black Woman to Coach Affiliated Baseball
Baseball is the American pastime and one of the more conservative sports amongst the US national professional sports. For all of its notoriety and popularity, the sport has always stuck to what made it great in the first place: tradition. As we head into the new season which kicks off in part when Spring Training starts in February, history will note that the first Black woman to ever coach in affiliated pro baseball was hired in 2021, by a team rich in tradition, the Boston Red Sox. Bianca Smith has been hired by the Red Sox as a minor-league coach, an important first for minority women, Black women, and women in general in the baseball world. Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe reported the historic moment.
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Bianca Smith is not just a name from a binder; the Dartmouth college product has been around pro baseball for a long time. In 2007, she took an internship role in the baseball department of the Texas Rangers after a softball career in college. She moved on to work within the MLB as part of the amateur administration and had an internship stint with the Cincinnati Reds. Smith has refined her experience as a director of baseball operations for Case Western Reserve, and then an assistant coach role for the University of Dallas and then an assistant coach/hitting instructor position for Carroll University prior to joining the Red Sox. The Red Sox vice president of player development, Ben Crockett, had high praise for Smith while confirming the news, saying she is passionate about growing her skills and has the experience to thrive.
Bianca Smith becomes the first Black woman in pro baseball front office, but she is not the first woman. She will be joining a very exclusive group of women in baseball and pro sports, in general. Alyssa Nakken became the first woman coach in MLB history, last season, after being hired by the Giants. Rachel Folden (Cubs), Christina Whitlock (Cardinals), and Rachel Balkovec (Yankees), are just a few of the names in that exclusive club, a breath of fresh air and inspiration to women and girls around the world. News of Smith’s new job comes a few days after Becky Hammond of the San Antonio Spurs became the first woman to serve as head coach in an NBA game after Gregg Popovich was ejected.
