On this very special episode of the Black Baseball Mixtape podcast, Cheats visits with A's signee KJ White Jr. and his father, Coach Kelcey White Sr. The White family shares their journey from KJ's days as a youth player, to KJ playing for his father at the powerhouse Westlake High, to starring at Southern University, and ultimately signing his first pro contract. This is an episode that every young player and parent of a young player should listen to and learn from.

The Black Baseball Mixtape is presented in partnership with the Players Alliance, Minority Prospects, and Numbers Game Scorebooks.

Contact the show at BlackBaseballMixtape@gmail.com.

Cheats and Flobo break down the 2026 MLB trade deadline. Who are the winners, and who are the losers? Did the Rays, Phillies, and Yankees do enough to win the World Series? Should Nationals and O's fans be happy or sad? Are the Dodgers the most unlikable team in MLB?

All of that and a closing discussion about the inaugural weekend of the Women's Professional Baseball League (WPBL).

Whether you love them or hate them, the Boston Red Sox are the talk of MLB. Between their slow start and now their 15-game winning streak, people don't really know what to make of the BoSox.

In full disclosure, I am not a Red Sox fan. I'm an O's fan, and the Sox are in the AL East, so that is their first strike. They are also the last team to integrate -- which has always struck me the wrong way. The Red Sox integrated their team after Jackie Robinson retired. That's wild. And let's not get into the complicated (AKA racist) relationship the Boston fans have with Black players on their team, and that of their opponents. All of that to say, I'm not a Sox fan. But things are looking up. And when I look at the Red Sox prospect list -- I get excited.

The Sox feature three African-American pitching arms within the top 10 of their prospect list: #2 Anthony Eyanson, #4 Kyson Witherspoon, and #7 Marcus Phillips. All three come from big SEC programs. Witherspoon and Phillips are 2025 1st Round draft picks, and Eyanson is a 3rd rounder of the same draft class. All possess elite stuff. Witherspoon and Phillips are both in A+ ball, while Eyanson has rocketed to AA and pitched in the 2026 Futures Game. The future in Boston is not only bright, but it may be Black.