SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — With a black sweatshirt pulled over his head and a glove in hand, Tony Vitello blends in almost as if he’s one of the players.
The new manager for the San Francisco Giants grabs a piece of gum from a basket in the dugout, then heads out onto the grass at Scottsdale Stadium and gets to work.
He lingers for a while in right field, surveying the scene, before making his way to the indoor cage. A short while later, he’s all the way back at home plate, leaning on the right side of the batting cage. Vitello bumps fists with Heliot Ramos after one of the left fielder’s rounds of batting practice, then moves several feet to his left for a different look at San Francisco hitters as they take their swings.
“He’s everywhere,” shortstop Willy Adames said. “He has a lot of energy. He likes to be watching everybody, making sure that everybody is working right and doing the right things. He’s just trying to push the guys to work hard and to be better, and I think that’s something that’s going to help the guys a lot and I think that’s something we needed.”
All eyes are on Vitello as the 47-year-old St. Louis native takes over one of MLB’s most storied franchises without a professional baseball backstory of his own, having neither played nor coached above the collegiate level.
The unconventional hire was made last October by Buster Posey, the 38-year-old president of baseball operations for the Giants and a former catcher who spent his entire MLB career from 2009-21 in San Francisco, helping the franchise win three of its eight World Series championships, including the club’s most recent title in 2014.
Vitello came to San Francisco after elevating the University of Tennessee to new heights on the diamond during his eight-year run as head coach of the Volunteers — the highlight was the program’s first College World Series championship in 2024 — and before that he worked as an assistant at Arkansas (2014-17), TCU (2011-13) and Missouri (2003-10), his alma mater.
And everybody will be paying attention for his high-profile managerial debut when the Giants host the New York Yankees in the opener for MLB’s 2026 regular season Wednesday night. It’s the only game that day (other teams open Thursday and Friday), and it will also mark the first time streaming service Netflix carries live MLB action.
“As ready as I’ll be if you ask me that question before the season starts,” Vitello said ahead of the club’s Cactus League exhibition opener last month during spring training. “I don’t think you’re ever really ready to do something until you get to do it. … Inevitably something pops up in where you’re like, ‘I wish I could go back in time and know that.'”
An avid swimmer who aspires to one day complete the famous open-water challenge from Alcatraz Island to San Francisco, Vitello scans his various baseball zones much like a lifeguard with eyes up, observing everything and everyone.
He also has committed to taking in the wisdom from former managers he has surrounded himself with, such as Dusty Baker and Bruce Bochy (who spent a combined 23 seasons as San Francisco’s skipper), and new Giants infield coach Ron Washington, a 73-year-old baseball lifer who has managerial experience with the Texas Rangers and the Los Angeles Angels.
“I’ve talked with those guys; they’ve been awesome,” Vitello said. “A lot of little things. When Boch says it, not only do you hear it, but you hear it in that thunderous voice. I’ve taken notes from all those guys. I don’t think there’s been one drastic thing said to me, like, ‘Holy cow, reinvent the game,’ or anything like that. It’s just been a lot of consistent help.”
Bouncing between fields during spring training has been one of the biggest adjustments for Vitello after being able to operate on a smaller scale in Knoxville. When he addressed the full team on the first day after everyone reported to San Francisco’s camp, Vitello aimed to just be himself.
“Hopefully it didn’t sound like a speech,” he said. “More of a conversation.”
A significant learning curve is to be expected, but Vitello has made a strong impression on his players so far.
“Tony’s passion for baseball is something else,” outfielder Jung Hoo Lee said. “Just being around him, I feel like my passion grows more with him. It’s really nice being around Tony.”
Near the end of one practice last month, Vitello squatted with hands on his thighs, watching Washington work with Adames.
“That’s going to help him a lot,” Adames said of all the support. “He’s got Bochy that’s going to be around, and Dusty that’s going to be around, and Buster is always around. We’ve got a lot of people who have a lot of experience in baseball and have a lot of people who have a lot of experience being a manager, and I think that’s going to help him a lot.”
Former San Diego Padres manager Jayce Tingler is Vitello’s good friend and now his bench coach, too. Vitello only announced his coaching staff at the start of spring (months after many other teams) because that’s how much thought he put into who would be by his side — and because not doing everything himself has been a process.
Previously, there was recruiting, planning road trips, monitoring studies and all of the other demands in the college game.
“I think get more comfortable with delegating,” Vitello said of one of his necessary adjustments, “but about nine years ago, I definitely warmed up to it with the group of people that I was around.”
Craig Stammen, entering his first season as manager in San Diego — one of San Francisco’s rivals in the National League West Division — understands the questions about inexperience and is aware scrutiny comes with the job.
“He’s a baseball guy, so I’m going to respect him the same way I respect somebody that played 20 years in the big leagues,” the 42-year-old Stammen, a former pitcher for the Padres and Washington Nationals, said of Vitello. “I think he’s earned the right to be a manager in the big leagues.
“Some people will question me if I earned the right to be a manager in the big leagues,” said Stammen, who worked in San Diego’s front office the past two years. “His track record in college is very successful, so he’s going to have the opportunity to bring that track record to MLB.”
Vitello acknowledges there have been some early hurdles — and knows there will be plenty more along the way. He replaces Bob Melvin, a 22-year managerial veteran (and three-time MLB manager of the year) who was fired after two years in San Francisco and the Giants’ fourth straight season without a playoff berth.
“I don’t think it’s been too wild,” Vitello said. “… Seamless is a high standard. I think there’s been some snags, but it’s kind of been like, ‘OK, I get how this goes now.'”