WILD THINGS TAB EX-AFFILIATED, INDEPENDENT PITCHER REID SANTOS AS PITCHING COACH FOR UPCOMING 2027 SEASON
WASHINGTON, Pa. (November 3) – Manager Tom Vaeth has added to his field staff for the upcoming 2027 season with the addition of Reid Santos, a three-time MLB draft pick and nine-season alum of professional baseball, as pitching coach for the club. Santos was most recently in the same role with the Wausua Woodchucks (Northwoods League) in 2026.
The Woodchucks finished in the top three of the Northwoods League in earned run average as a team this past summer in Santos’s first season with the team. He spent the 2020 through 2026 collegiate seasons as an assistant and Head Pitching Coach at College of the Desert. There he helped lead the team to a 2022 Inland Empire Conference title, the program’s first in 51 years and helped facilitate 96 player transfers to four-year universities over six seasons. He was voted Assistant Coach of the Year for the Inland Empire Athletic Conference in 2026.
Santos was born and raised in Kaneohe, Hawaii and was a standout pitcher at James B. Castle High School, from which he was selected in the 23rd round of the 2000 MLB Amateur Draft by the Montreal Expos. He moved on to enroll at Saddleback College in California, where he spent two seasons with the Gauchos. He was selected in the 2001 draft by the Texas Rangers but did not sign and then again in the 2002 draft by the Cleveland Indians in the 2002. Reid spent the 2003 through 2008 seasons in the Cleveland organization, reaching as far as Triple-A Buffalo (2008). He pitched for Triple-A Rochester in the Minnesota system in 2009 before pitching in indy ball with Kansas City the next two years, one of which was in the Northern League and the next in the American Association.
Over his seven affiliated seasons, he was 26-25 with a 4.15 ERA in 208 appearances (71 were starts). He walked 188 and struck out 529 in 600.1 innings. He also briefly joined the Blue Jays organization in 2008 before roster moves.
“We’re happy and excited to announce Reid as our pitching coach for the 2027 season. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Reid for some time now… he pitched against our Winnipeg teams when he finished up his playing career with the Kansas City T-Bones,” said manager Tom Vaeth. “I’ve seen him compete on the field and admired how he went about his craft. He was always tough to gameplan against and try to figure out for my offense, so I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do with our pitchers. The wealth of experience he gained in reaching the Triple-A level and then figuring out the indy ball style of play should be a real asset in the development and success of our pitching staff.”
