{"id":585942,"date":"2026-02-22T04:13:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T04:13:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/585942\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T04:13:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T04:13:14","slug":"tony-vitellos-debut-as-sf-giants-manager-turns-out-to-be-a-learning-winning-experience-the-mercury-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/585942\/","title":{"rendered":"Tony Vitello\u2019s debut as SF Giants manager turns out to be a learning, winning experience \u2013 The Mercury News"},"content":{"rendered":"

PEORIA, Ariz. \u2014 Giants manager Tony Vitello<\/a> woke up Saturday morning and watched the sunrise, as he often does. This one, though, felt different.<\/p>\n

For the first time in his life, Vitello attended a spring training game, another item off his checklist. He can now add managing one and exchanging a Major League Baseball lineup card to it, too.<\/p>\n

Not bad for a guy who just last week said, \u201cI don\u2019t know what a spring training game feels or looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n

Against the Seattle Mariners at Peoria Sports Complex Saturday afternoon, the 47-year-old found out. And he and his new team came away with a 10-5 win, yet another check for his checkoff list.<\/p>\n

Vitello, though, knows enough about spring ball to keep things in perspective.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnytime you\u2019re keeping score, you want to win,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cBut I think everybody kind of knows what you\u2019re working toward. There\u2019s a bunch of objectives that supersede the scoreboard.\u201d<\/p>\n

For the new skipper<\/a>, the true challenge was in the buildup. It was slightly unfamiliar and certainly different compared to his tenure with the University of Tennessee. It didn\u2019t take Vitello long to settle in.<\/p>\n

He found his spot in the dugout and from there things just clicked. He realized everyone had a job, including himself.<\/p>\n

Mostly, Vitello saw Saturday as a day of learning, an opportunity to grow and discover more about his ballclub. He mentioned enjoying debating in the dugout and seeing his players face off against a new opponent.<\/p>\n

Vitello also learned where not to stand in the dugout after getting hit on his left shin by a foul ball.<\/p>\n

\u201cI realized it would be smarter not to stand in the walkway,\u201d Vitello said with a laugh. \u201cThere was a bunch of stuff everybody commented on or wrote down. The score you can put in your back pocket. I think our coaching staff getting familiar with some in-game discussion was a real benefit.\u201d<\/p>\n

That familiarity extended to the players, too. Blade Tidwell, who played under Vitello in\u00a0 Tennessee, said his manager was \u201cthe exact same.\u201d<\/p>\n

And that comfort may have helped Tidwell, who, while making his debut for San Francisco, struck out the side in the second inning while walking one during his 25 pitches.<\/p>\n

\u201cI heard him a couple of times when I was pitching,\u201d Tidwell said. \u201cHe said stuff he used to say while I was in college. \u2018Like, all right, focus on the hitter.\u2019 He\u2019s always got a bunch of one-liners up his sleeve.\u201d<\/p>\n

New faces & spring debuts<\/p>\n

Center fielder Harrison Bader, signed as a free agent in January, made his first start in orange & black while wearing bright blue batting gloves and cleats, Bader had a hit and two RBIs while batting leadoff.<\/p>\n

Also debuting for San Francisco was catcher Daniel Susac, a former Oakland A\u2019s first-round pick who Vitello said \u201chad a hell of a day,\u201d after starting at catcher and getting a hit and scoring a run. The 24-year-old joined the Giants after being selected in the Rule 5 Draft from the A\u2019s.<\/p>\n

This spring, Susac\u2019s goal is to chip away at weaknesses and improve overall. He wants to cleanup his fielding and be more selective at the plate.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a little different for me (this spring) because I\u2019m going to be playing a lot more,\u201d said Susac, who must remain on the Giants\u2019 26-man roster or be offered back to the A\u2019s. \u201cThe intent is a little different for me. This is probably my first spring training where I\u2019m going to see more serious minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Giants\u2019 top prospect, Bryce Eldridge, got the starting nod, too. He began the game at first base and showed a bit of opposite-field pop, doubling to left. Before the game, Eldridge discussed feeling more comfortable and in rhythm this spring.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have great people here, and the new guys are amazing,\u201d Eldridge said. \u201cThey\u2019re blending in well. Bader, (Luis) Arr\u00e1ez, they\u2019re treating me like I\u2019ve known them for years.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SanSan Francisco Giants pitcher Hayden Birdsong #60 delivers a pitch during the spring training game against the Seattle Mariners at Peoria Sports Complex on February 21, 2026 in Peoria, Arizona.<\/p>\n

(John Medina Special to the Mercury News)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Birdsong\u2019s rough start<\/p>\n

Right-handed pitcher Hayden Birdsong also got the starting nod. It didn\u2019t quite go according to plan.<\/p>\n

He walked two batters, gave up five runs and recorded just one out before being removed by Vitello in a rough one-third inning performance. His first two fastballs \u2014 strikes at 96 and 97 mph \u2014 looked sharp, but command became an issue.<\/p>\n

On 26 total pitches against six batters, Birdsong tossed 12 balls and left after giving up a grand slam to former Granada High star Miles Mastroubuoni, a 381-foot blast to right-center.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, Birdsong said his delivery felt great and that he\u2019s focused on working on his off-speed stuff with a larger focus on trying to make the big league roster.<\/p>\n

His manager is looking for presence and limited walks from Birdsong.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn college and then in minor league ball, he was always having success,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cAt some point, you get punched in the mouth and you\u2019ve got to find that consistent image. That\u2019s why guys have superstitions and routines. It\u2019s to try to stay as close to the center as possible, so I think that\u2019ll be a theme for him this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

As for Vitello, this spring will be less about what\u2019s on the scoreboard and more about the lessons that come with checking off the next box.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"PEORIA, Ariz. \u2014 Giants manager Tony Vitello woke up Saturday morning and watched the sunrise, as he often…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":585943,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2408],"tags":[5,162,7939,5775,853,4,378,66,4343,4340,4344,4341,4342,185,151],"class_list":{"0":"post-585942","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-francisco-giants","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-giants","10":"tag-giants-alert","11":"tag-inside-sports","12":"tag-latest-headlines","13":"tag-mlb","14":"tag-san-francisco","15":"tag-san-francisco-giants","16":"tag-sanfrancisco","17":"tag-sanfranciscogiants","18":"tag-sf","19":"tag-sf-giants","20":"tag-sfgiants","21":"tag-sports","22":"tag-spring-training"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116112341277064852","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/585942","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=585942"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/585942\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/585943"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=585942"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=585942"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=585942"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}