{"id":647741,"date":"2026-03-28T01:42:30","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T01:42:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/647741\/"},"modified":"2026-03-28T01:42:30","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T01:42:30","slug":"giants-tony-vitello-threatens-lineup-changes-after-back-to-back-shutouts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/647741\/","title":{"rendered":"Giants’ Tony Vitello threatens lineup changes after back-to-back shutouts"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN FRANCISCO \u2014 Expect changes to the Giants\u2019 lineup after the team was shut out for the second straight game<\/a> to start its season.<\/p>\n

Manager Tony Vitello<\/a> rolled out the same group after San Francisco was blanked in its season opener Wednesday, but after mustering just one hit off Cam Schlittler in a 3-0 loss to the Yankees on Friday, the rookie manager said he plans to shake things up.<\/p>\n

\u201cWednesday\u2019s lineup didn\u2019t have much to show, but we met on it and left it as is,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cThere\u2019s a good chance there will be some variance tomorrow based off the numbers and a new pitcher on the mound.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SanThe Giants\u2019 Willy Adames reacts after fouling a ball during the fourth inning against the Yankees IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

In two games against Max Fried, Schlittler and the Yankees\u2019 bullpen, the Giants have produced zero runs, four hits, four walks and 19 strikeouts. It\u2019s the first time in the franchise\u2019s 143-year history that it has been blanked in back-to-back games to begin a season.<\/p>\n

Surely, they\u2019ll have more luck against Saturday\u2019s starter, Will Warren, regardless of the batting order. Even a sample as minuscule as 59 at-bats (and the accompanying .068 batting average) is bound for some regression to the mean.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s kind of all about sample size. Over and over, we\u2019ve talked about being in this for the long haul,\u201d Vitello said<\/a>. \u201cI think that\u2019s where our guys\u2019 mindset is. But there\u2019s also a pressing need in there for some feel-good and also to want to perform for the fans.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, it\u2019s far from the output expected after San Francisco added Luis Arraez and Harrison Bader to a lineup that already included Willy Adames, Matt Chapman and Rafael Devers.<\/p>\n

Chapman accounted for both of the Giants\u2019 walks in Friday\u2019s loss, while a softly hit double down the right field line from Heliot Ramos amounted to their only extra-base hit in two games.<\/p>\n

Adames struck out three times Friday and is hitless in seven at-bats. Devers also earned a hat trick in their latest loss and is 1 for 8. Bader and Arraez have combined to reach base twice in 14 total trips to the plate.<\/p>\n

Adames watched a close strike three that scraped the inside corner after Chapman reached on a walk to begin the seventh, trailing 3-0. Rather than use either of the two ABS challenges the Giants had, he walked back to the dugout visibly upset.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s one where if he was disappointed in himself, that\u2019s fine,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cIf it was frustration out of [the called strike], that was an opportunity where it could\u2019ve been used.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"SanGiants right fielder Jung Hoo Lee takes a big cut against the Yankees on Friday. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

The Giants have yet to challenge a pitch on offense, despite watching the Yankees do so twice, including an overturned call a few pitches before Aaron Judge deposited a two-run homer halfway up the left field bleachers that broke a scoreless tie in the top of the sixth.<\/p>\n

\u201cI definitely wouldn\u2019t doubt our guys\u2019 efforts, but if you\u2019re trying too hard and things start to move fast on you, maybe you\u2019re a little bit hesitant and you\u2019re not wanting to be the one who makes a mistake,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cI think they\u2019ll settle in and find a little bit more of a comfort zone, but if you analyze the last two days, there were more opportunities to [challenge] than we utilized.\u201d<\/p>\n

Effort and emotion were two themes Vitello continued to touch on after the game as he attempted to find answers for the Giants\u2019 woeful start to his tenure in the dugout.<\/p>\n

As in: too much of both.<\/p>\n

Between Netflix\u2019s Opening Night on Wednesday, the Giants\u2019 traditional season-opening festivities before Friday afternoon\u2019s game and a \u201cfire and brimstone\u201d speech that Vitello gave to the team Tuesday, the manager wondered if emotions were running too high.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe results, or the numbers, look like there\u2019s not a lot of try-hard,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cBut kind of the old baseball adage, there\u2019s probably too much. Maybe that extends to that conversation prior to the season. Or maybe it just stems from all the Opening Day fanfare.\u201d<\/p>\n

Robbie Ray, who limited the Yankees to three runners over 5 \u2153 innings besides Judge\u2019s home run and the double from Paul Goldschmidt that preceded it, dismissed that idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all major-league players,\u201d he said. \u201cI think we can handle the ups and downs.\u201d<\/p>\n

All the same, Ramos shrugged off the idea of switching up the batting order.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve just got to get on base,\u201d Ramos said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to execute. \u2026 It\u2019s just two games to start the season. We\u2019ve just got to get going.\u201d<\/p>\n

Consider it the first true test for the first-year manager, given Vitello at least deployed his bullpen as well as he can while playing from behind. A solo shot from Giancarlo Stanton off Jose Butto amounted to the only run the Giants\u2019 relievers have allowed in 7 \u2154 innings.<\/p>\n

The bullpen was considered a question mark. The reinvigorated lineup was supposed to be a strength. That hasn\u2019t been the case, at least through a two-game sample.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d kind of put it on me a little bit,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cGet all fire and brimstone a few days ago. I think some good words were shared. But I also think as of right now, it\u2019s a little emotional in there.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SAN FRANCISCO \u2014 Expect changes to the Giants\u2019 lineup after the team was shut out for the second…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":647742,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2408],"tags":[5,2178,162,4,62,378,66,4343,4340,4344,4341,4342,185],"class_list":{"0":"post-647741","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-california","10":"tag-giants","11":"tag-mlb","12":"tag-new-york-yankees","13":"tag-san-francisco","14":"tag-san-francisco-giants","15":"tag-sanfrancisco","16":"tag-sanfranciscogiants","17":"tag-sf","18":"tag-sf-giants","19":"tag-sfgiants","20":"tag-sports"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116304266158219025","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647741","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=647741"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647741\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/647742"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=647741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=647741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=647741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}