Jan 6, 2021 2 min read

The Washington Wild Things wasted no time finding a manager for the 2021 Frontier League season.

Washington is expected to announce today that it has hired Tom Vaeth, a veteran of the independent baseball ranks, as its new manager. Vaeth succeeds Gregg Langbehn, who spent four seasons (2016-19) with the Wild Things. The Frontier League canceled its 2020 season because of the coronavirus pandemic. Langbehn informed the organization last month that he was retiring from managing.

Vaeth will be the 10th manager in Wild Things history, which dates to 2002. Of the 10, Vaeth is only the third to have no prior managing experience in independent or affiliated baseball, though he has plenty of experience in pro ball as a coach.

The 48-year-old Vaeth spent 17 years (2003-19) as the hitting coach for the Winnipeg Goldeyes in the independent American Association and its forerunner, the Northern League. Vaeth was part of three league championships in Winnipeg, including consecutive titles in 2016 and 2017.

In his first three years in Winnipeg, Vaeth coached under Goldeyes manager Hal Lanier, the former Houston Astros manager. In 2006, Vaeth became hitting coach for Rick Forney, who is still the Goldeyes’ manager.

Vaeth was born in Baltimore and currently resides in Orleans, Ontario, a suburb of Ottawa. He has ties to Pennsylvania as his mother resides in Littlestown in the central part of the state.

A catcher as a player, Vaeth played two years at the junior college level before an injury derailed his playing career. A Miami Marlins scout suggested to Vaeth that he should pursue a career in player development. He spent four years in scouting, with the Marlins and San Diego Padres. He also spent five years with the Baltimore Orioles as a batting practice pitcher – he has the rare ability to pitch both lefthanded and righthanded – and coached at the junior college and Division I levels.

Langbehn brought stability to the manager’s job. The team had gone through six managers in the previous nine years and utilized a manager-by-committee for part of the 2014 season before hiring Langbehn.

Langbehn managed Washington two playoff appearances, an East Division championship and a spot in the Frontier League Championship Series in 2018. He managed one MVP (James Harris in 2018), a Pitcher of the Year (Thomas Dorminy in 2018) a Citizenship Award winner (Rashad Brown in 2017), 21 all-stars and had eight of his players’ contracts purchased by major league organizations.