"Keep proving them wrong" - MLB's first black female coach Bianca Smith says its 'cool' to see new era of female baseball players
Bianca Smith has become an inspiration and a role model for budding female baseball players who envision a career in the big league as a front-end staff member.
In her recent interview while being involved in the JET program, she expressed major aspirations for girls who play baseball and aspire for a major career in any aspect of the game.
When asked about aspirational women's baseball players and the impact of the JET program, Smith said:
"It's pretty cool to seeing all these girls play baseball that I didn't get to see when I was growing up playing. I am sure there are so many out there who want to play first thought is oh, girls don't play baseball."
She added:
"They see this and that's not a thought anymore. Never give up, and ignore the naysayers. You can do it, you are proving them wrong and anybody who says you can't, keep proving them wrong."
She is currently involved in coaching elementary and middle school baseball players in Japan as a part of the Japanese Exchange and Teaching program. She has already having accepted the offer of becoming the infield and hitting coach for the 23 and under Great Britain team as well as the Great Britain women's national baseball team.
Bianca Smith signed a minor league deal as a coach with the Boston Red Sox in 2021
Bianca Smith became the talk of the town after signing to become a minor league coach with the Boston Red Sox organization in 2021. She became the first African-American woman to achieve this feat, overcoming a lot of hurdles in her career.
Before this, she had interned with the Texas Rangers and the Cincinnati Reds. Two years later, she declined a multi-year extension with the Red Sox to take a chance on her skills and talents and seek employment elsewhere.
On a telephonic conversation with The Athletic, Smith said:
"They wanted to send me back to rookie ball and I had no desire to be there, so I decided to take my chance. Everyone I know who stays at rookie ball (for a long period of time) does so because they have families and they like the lifestyle. I was ready to travel more. My passion is (game) strategy and rookie ball is almost entirely player development." -
And travelling she did, as Bianca Smith has been involved with player training and development in five different countries now. Her current exchange program deal in Japan runs until 2026.