There have been some rumblings over the last week that Tennessee Vols baseball coach Tony Vitello could be an option for a couple of manager jobs in MLB.
Vitello’s name has been mentioned as an option for the San Francisco Giants and Atlanta Braves.
Advertisement
VolQuest’s Brent Hubbs said on Friday during an appearance on 104.5 The Zone’s Ramon and Will that he believes the Giants have “interest” in Vitello.
“Do I think the Giants have some legitimate interest? I think they have interest or curiosities,” said Hubbs. “I’m not saying he’s at the top of their board, but I do think there’s enough of a relationship there with their management team and their leadership that, you know, they have some interest and intrigue there. But it’s premature to say it’s going to become anything. It’s dumb on my part to say there’s no chance it ever becomes anything. So we’ll see.”
Tony Vitello responds to rumors that he’s interested in leaving the Vols for MLB
Vitello spoke to the Knoxville News Sentinel’s Mike Wilson this weekend about the MLB rumors.
Advertisement
“It will eventually get to you,” said Vitello to Wilson of his name being connected to MLB jobs. “You hear it and it’s flattering. Basically, it is a compliment to our support staff and our players….That is what I consider it — a compliment.”
That’s not exactly a firm denial from Vitello, but it’s worth noting that Hubbs pointed out on Friday that the veteran Tennessee head coach doesn’t mind his name “being out there”.
“He knows (President of Baseball Operations) Buster Posey from the San Francisco Giants,” said Hubbs. “They talk somewhat on the regular, from what I understand. They were together and visited with each other recently when the Rockies and the Giants played a series, and Tony was out visiting and seeing some of his former players. [Did] they had conversations in the last week or so? Yeah, I think they probably have. Does that mean Tony Vitello is leaving? No, I don’t think it does. But the first time you say there’s nothing to that and you walk away, then you look like a fool if something happens. I don’t think Tony minds his name being out there.”
Advertisement
Vitello’s name being connected to MLB jobs is a good thing for the perception of Tennessee baseball (and for recruiting). That’s likely the main reason why Vitello isn’t in a hurry to quiet the noise.
window.addEventListener(‘message’, function (event) {if (event.data.totalpoll && event.data.totalpoll.action === ‘resizeHeight’) {document.querySelector(‘#totalpoll-iframe-1476’).height = event.data.totalpoll.value;}}, false);document.querySelector(‘#totalpoll-iframe-1476’).contentWindow.postMessage({totalpoll: {action: ‘requestHeight’}}, ‘*’);
This story was originally reported by A to Z Sports on Oct 5, 2025, where it first appeared in the Nashville section. Add A to Z Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.