SAN FRANCISCO — Tony Vitello fully recognizes he is a most unconventional call-up to Major League Baseball, making the leap from coaching in the college ranks to taking over as the next manager of the San Francisco Giants while bypassing the minor leagues.
Yet the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers for the past eight seasons hardly seems fazed by the pressures of taking such a daunting path, saying “this is a challenge that has been presented to me.”
And when spring training begins in a few months, he plans to get into drills right away alongside his players, throwing batting practice or hitting fungoes in an effort to help improve some fundamentals — even if his arm is beat up at age 47 and Vitello makes it clear his own skills are a far cry from those of the players he will be leading after landing the job with no professional experience as a player or coach.
Vitello plans to lean on the team’s veteran leaders to guide those who might need some extra support, and he has some solid options, including a trio of franchise faces in shortstop Willy Adames, third baseman Matt Chapman and pitcher Logan Webb.
“I do think we’re reaching this period where fundamentals and the way guys train are completely different,” Vitello said during his introductory news conference Thursday at Oracle Park. “You’ve seen growth in velos and power and speed and things like that. … I think there’s been some things lost when a kid is growing up on just how to slide and how to do things that seem overly simple.
“If you haven’t practiced it, you haven’t been taught it, how are you going to be good at it? How can you be expected to be good at it? I think (for) some of those younger players, it needs to be emphasized more.”
Along with bringing the Giants back to prominence and playoff success — yes, that topic came up in discussions with president of baseball operations Buster Posey as they try to gain ground on the rival Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West Division — everybody involved hopes to see some long-term stability in the dugout after regular turnover for San Francisco’s managerial seat in recent years.
Posey, a former catcher who spent his entire 12-year MLB playing career with the Giants, is also just more than a year into his current role after the firing of Farhan Zaidi last year.
The Giants dismissed manager Bob Melvin a month ago after they went 81-81 in his second season and missed the playoffs for a fourth straight year. San Francisco hasn’t reached the postseason since winning the NL West with a franchise-record 107 victories to edge the rival Dodgers by one game in 2021 under Gabe Kapler.
That was the only time in the past 13 years that Los Angeles did not win the division. The Giants have won the World Series eight times, including a trio of titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014 during Bruce Bochy’s 13-year run as manager from 2007-19. Kapler succeeded him and lasted four seasons before being replaced by Melvin.
“We’ll all work together. The whole goal is to create a bond here between everybody at the top all the way down to whatever you consider the bottom of the depth chart,” said Vitello, whose eight-year tenure was highlighted by multiple Southeastern Conference championships, regular trips to the College World Series, and the program’s first national championship in 2024. “We’re in this together now, whether you like me or not.”
He is animated and energetic, even while acknowledging he will have to navigate a large learning curve, make regular adjustments and understand that motivating college athletes isn’t the same as finding ways to push professionals who have been doing this for decades.
His approach at Tennessee: “Coach guys as individuals.”
“I’m fully aware of the tradition that’s here, the excellence,” he said.
All his life, Vitello watched father Greg coach and rehash games afterward, analyzing what he might have done differently. Vitello acknowledged mother Kathy might prefer he tone it down sometimes.
“When we first started talking to Tony, it was abundantly clear he was a natural leader,” Posey said.
He can’t wait to embrace Bay Area life as both a music aficionado and a self-described foodie. And Vitello has aspirations of jumping in the water and completing the Alcatraz swim to blow off some steam and burn a few calories.
It was general manager Zack Minasian who first floated to Posey the possibility of hiring Vitello.
“As much as this feels out of the box, Tony’s name has been bouncing around Major League Baseball for a while,” Minasian said.
Vitello said he and Posey had a great conversation after Game 7 of the American League Championship Series between the Seattle Mariners and the Toronto Blue Jays on Oct. 20, and negotiations progressed quickly, with the Giants announcing his hire two days later. Posey liked Vitello’s common vision.
“The unique thing about this process was — and it’s one thing I’ve really come to appreciate about Tony and honestly made me feel more confident in this decision — is he was hard to get a hold of because he was on the field all the time or he was bouncing city to city recruiting,” Posey said. “And just because this was on his plate he was still full go with what his job was at Tennessee, and I have a tremendous amount of respect for that.”
During his various media sessions Thursday, Vitello referenced many of the biggest names in Giants history, everyone from Barry Bonds, Will Clark and Willie Mays at the plate and in the field to Tim Lincecum, Sergio Romo and Brian Wilson on the mound.
“The one thing that always got to me was the sense of family that was always part of this organization,” Vitello said.
So it was only fitting that in the front row to cheer him on were his parents, sisters, nieces and extended family. Afterward, they were all smiles when treated to lunch from a popular local restaurant that just happened to feature his name: Tony’s Pizza Napoletana.
They certainly hope their beloved Tony will one day gain similar prominence in San Francisco.