Bianca Smith
Coach
Born: March 1991 (age 32)[1][2]
Sewickley, Pennsylvania
Bats: Right
Throws: Right

Bianca Smith (born March 1991) is an American professional baseball coach. During the 2021 season, she became the first African American woman to serve as a professional baseball coach, working in the Boston Red Sox organization.

Early life and education

Smith was born in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, and moved to Grapevine, Texas, at age 6 or 7.[3] Her father, Victor Smith, played college football at Dartmouth College from 1985 to 1987; her mother, Dawn Patterson (d. 2013), was also a Dartmouth alumna and an attorney.[4][5] Her mother was a New York Yankees fan who passed her love of the sport on to Smith.[6] Her step-brother, Reggie Cannon, is a professional soccer player.[6]

Smith attended Colleyville Heritage High School in Dallas, where she played softball and was a co-captain in her senior year.[4] She graduated high school in 2008.[7] She next enrolled at Dartmouth College, where she played on both the varsity softball team and the club baseball team.[4][8][9] She graduated from Dartmouth with a bachelor's degree in sociology in 2012.[7]

With an eye on pursuing a career as a baseball general manager, Smith obtained a J.D. degree and a MBA in sports management from Case Western Reserve University in 2017.[7][10] At the same time, from 2013 to 2017, Smith worked as director of baseball operations for the Case Western Reserve Spartans.[11]

Coaching career

In 2018, Smith was a volunteer assistant coach for the University of Dallas college baseball team, as well as an intern in the baseball operations departments of the Texas Rangers.[12][7] She also interned at Major League Baseball corporate headquarters.[13] In 2019, she was a baseball operations trainee with the Cincinnati Reds.[7] In August 2019, she was hired as assistant athletic director for compliance and administration, and assistant baseball coach and hitting coordinator, at Carroll University in Wisconsin.[7][9][14][13] Her coaching relied heavily on statistical metrics and data analysis.[12]

On December 31, 2020, The Boston Globe reported that the Boston Red Sox would hire Smith as a minor league coach, to be based in Fort Myers, Florida, working with position players.[8] On January 4, 2021, the Red Sox made the hiring official.[11] Per the Red Sox' 2021 minor league assignments, she became part of the coaching staff assigned to the team's Fenway South complex, led by manager Tom Kotchman.[15] With that assignment, Smith became the first African American woman to serve as a coach in a professional baseball organization.[8][15] She received sponsorships from Nike, Oakley, and Topps.[6]

In 2022, Smith returned as a coach at the Fort Myers complex,[16] and later served as a coach for the Scottsdale Scorpions of the Arizona Fall League.[17] In 2023, Smith declined an offer to remain as a coach in the Red Sox organization, opting to look for a new opportunity.[18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Koch, Bill (January 7, 2021). "Red Sox make history, hire Bianca Smith as first Black woman to coach". The Providence Journal. Retrieved February 14, 2021 – via MSN.com.
  2. ↑ Macur, Juliet (March 3, 2021). "The First Black Woman to Coach in Pro Baseball Thanks Her Mom for the Job". New York Times. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  3. ↑ Persak, Mike (January 11, 2021). "Sewickley-born Bianca Smith finally gets chance to focus on baseball alone with Red Sox". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved February 19, 2021. Smith was born in Sewickley, but most of her upbringing took place in Grapevine, Texas.
  4. 1 2 3 "2012 Softball Roster: 17 Bianca Smith". Dartmouth College. 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  5. ↑ Dudkiewicz, Larissa (April 26, 2013). "Memorial Service Planned for Sewickley Resident Who Battled Rare Form of Cancer". Patch. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  6. 1 2 3 Macur, Juliet (March 3, 2021). "The First Black Woman to Coach in Pro Baseball Thanks Her Mom for the Job". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Bianca Smith". LinkedIn. 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  8. 1 2 3 McWilliams, Julian (December 31, 2020). "Red Sox hiring Bianca Smith as minor league coach, making her first Black woman to coach in pro baseball history". Boston Globe. Boston Globe. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  9. 1 2 Wright, Branson (January 12, 2021). "Red Sox coach Bianca Smith has spent her career proving she belongs". Andscape. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  10. ↑ Radcliffe, JR (August 26, 2019). "She already has experience coaching major-league baseball, and new Carroll assistant AD Bianca Smith will continue her journey here". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  11. 1 2 Browne, Ian (January 4, 2021). "Red Sox hire Smith, first Black female coach". MLB.com. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  12. 1 2 Persak, Mike (January 5, 2021). "Bianca Smith, Sewickley native, becomes 1st Black woman to coach professional baseball with Red Sox". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  13. 1 2 "Bianca Smith". Carroll University. 2021.
  14. ↑ Bonesteel, Matt (December 31, 2020). "Red Sox to hire Bianca Smith as minor league coach, the first Black woman to hold such a job". Washington Post. Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  15. 1 2 "Red Sox announce personnel moves in player development and Minor League field staffs". MLB.com (Press release). Boston Red Sox. January 29, 2021. Retrieved February 14, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Red Sox announce personnel moves in player development, set Minor League field staffs". MLB.com (Press release). Boston Red Sox. February 3, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
  17. ↑ "Scottsdale Scorpions Roster & Staff". MLB.com. Retrieved October 19, 2022.
  18. ↑ Speier, Alex (January 27, 2023). "Bianca Smith, the first Black woman hired as a coach by an MLB team, leaves Red Sox organization". The Boston Globe. Retrieved January 27, 2023.
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