Coach Bianca Smith is our esteemed guest for Mixtape Talk 016. She also happens to be the second person on our 2023 Podcast Dream Guest List to join the Mixtape.
Coach Smith made history in 2021 when she was hired as a coach by the Boston Red Sox organization. The hire made her the first Black woman ever to serve as a professional baseball coach.
While Coach Smith may have burst on many people’s radars with her historic hire, she has a journey made for Hollywood. She played softball and club baseball at Dartmouth. She earned two post-graduate degrees (one in law), interned in MLB front offices, and served as a volunteer coach at the college level. She applied for job after job after job, rarely hearing back from D1 programs and pro clubs. She worked seven paying jobs simultaneously, along with a volunteer coaching position. She earned her stripes to make history.
Our free-flowing conversation is fun and authentic. We touch on Coach Smith’s coaching style and philosophy, analytics versus the eye test, and how players respond to her instruction. We also discuss how life has changed for her since her hire. It’s a fantastic talk. Coach Smith is genuine, passionate, extremely knowledgeable, and even a bit funny; in her own way.
It was indeed an honor to have her on the Mixtape. I hope you enjoy this conversation. Please subscribe, share, and rate the Black Baseball Mixtape. We need your support to expand the mission.
Best,
Cheats @BlackBaseballMixtape – IG – @BBallMixtape (Twitter)
