Bianca Smith

Bianca Smith is a professional baseball coach in the Boston Red Sox organization. She is the first African American woman to serve as a professional baseball coach.

Bianca Smith
Boston Red Sox
Coach
Born: Paterson, NJ, U.S.

Early life and education

Bianca Smith was born in Paterson, New Jersey.[1] Her father, Victor Smith, played football at Dartmouth College from 1985 to 1987; her mother, Dawn Patterson (d. 2013), was also a Dartmouth alumna and an attorney.[2][3]

Smith attended Colleyville Heritage High School in Dallas, where she played softball and was a co-captain in her senior year.[2] She graduated high school in 2008.[4] She next enrolled at Dartmouth College, where she played the outfielder position on the softball team and was a member of the baseball team.[2][5][6] She graduated from Dartmouth with a B.A. in sociology in 2012.[4]

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.[4][7] At the same time, from 2013 to 2017, Smith worked as director of baseball operations for the Case Western Reserve Spartans.[8]

Coaching career

In 2018, Smith was a volunteer assistant coach for the University of Dallas baseball team, as well as an intern in the baseball operations departments of the Texas Rangers.[1][4] She also interned at Major League Baseball corporate headquarters.[9] In 2019, she was a baseball operations trainee with the Cincinnati Reds.[4] 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.[4][6][10][9] Her coaching relied heavily on statistical metrics and data analysis.[1]

On December 31, 2020, The Boston Globe reported that the Red Sox would hire Smith as a minor league coach in January, based in Fort Myers, Florida and working with position players.[5] On January 4, 2021, the Red Sox made the hiring official.[8] Smith is the first African American woman to serve as a coach in a professional baseball organization.[5]

See also

References
  1. 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.
  2. "2012 Softball Roster: 17 Bianca Smith". Dartmouth College. 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  3. Dudkiewicz, Larissa (April 26, 2013). "Memorial Service Planned for Sewickley Resident Who Battled Rare Form of Cancer". Patch. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  4. "Bianca Smith". LinkedIn. 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2021.
  5. 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.
  6. Wright, Branson (January 12, 2021). "Red Sox coach Bianca Smith has spent her career proving she belongs". The Undefeated. Retrieved January 13, 2021.
  7. 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.
  8. Browne, Ian (January 4, 2021). "Red Sox hire Smith, first Black female coach". MLB.com. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  9. "Bianca Smith". Carroll University. 2021.
  10. 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.
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