At least one of Tony Vitello’s top lieutenants is following Tony Vitello to San Francisco, after all, but his replacement is coming directly from another MLB team.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — At least one of Tony Vitello’s top lieutenants is going with him to San Francisco.
Tennessee Director of Baseball Performance Quentin Eberhardt is leaving the Vols and following his boss and close friend Vitello to San Francisco to run strength and conditioning for Major League Baseball’s San Francisco Giants, multiple sources confirmed to WBIR Sports.
No Tennessee staffers initially made the leap with Vitello – who became the first person in history to jump directly from college baseball to an MLB managerial position with no previous professional experience – but Eberhardt going with Vitello was always an option on the table. Eberhart worked for Vitello at Tennessee from 2018-21 before taking the top strength and conditioning position with the Chicago Cubs, but less than a year later he chose to leave the MLB world and come back to Tennessee, where he served in his critical role throughout the remainder of Vitello’s time in Knoxville.
Tennessee had a replacement ready, though.
Newly promoted Vols head coach Josh Elander is hiring Keegan Knoll to immediately fill the role vacated by Eberhardt’s departure.
Knoll spent the past eight years working with the Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers, and he held the top position in Chicago from 2022-24 after serving as an assistant strength and conditioning coach for that organization from 2018-22. He also has college experience at Long Beach State.