Who Is Tony Vitello?
It’s no secret that Buster Posey and the Giants are taking a risk in bringing in Vitello as the squad’s next manager. After completely turning around the University of Tennessee baseball program, he looks to save a franchise that has been the epitome of mediocre across the last four years.
While the spring doesn’t really give a clear picture of the in-game decisions a manager has to make, it does provide a sense of how they handle their clubhouse and the media. We should get a decent idea of what brand of baseball Vitello intends to play throughout the spring, especially as we inch closer to Opening Day.
If one could guess going off of his time at Tennessee, it’ll be a much more energetic clubhouse in San Francisco. In 2025, the Giants lacked a true sense of aggressiveness and fire, something Vitello is infamous for providing.
In terms of how he’ll handle the media, we got our first glimpse of that last week. Vitello intended the clear the air about his departure from Knoxville, but seemed to ruffle some feathers. He did make one thing clear, though: he is not afraid to say what is on his mind.
Did Vitello make his first mistake and display some immaturity coming from college ball? Or did he simply give us an idea of how he intends to operate during his tenure as the Giants’ manager? Time will tell.
If the hire works out, Posey may have changed the future landscape of managing in Major League Baseball.
Young Arms Proving Themselves
Even with a rotation that appears to be fully set, San Francisco has a handful of depth starters looking to prove they belong this spring. When the first, and inevitable, injury hits the rotation in 2026, who’s the first name to get the call?
Two righties that have had a cup of coffee in the big leagues immediately stand out after dominating in their 2026 debuts: Blade Tidwell and Trevor McDonald. While they both have thrown just an inning in the Cactus League, they’re continuing to build off of good finishes to their respective 2025 campaigns.