TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Tony Vitello could be on the verge of making baseball history.
Much to Tennessee’s chagrin.
The Athletic was the first of multiple national outlets to report Saturday afternoon that Vitello, who guided the Volunteers to the 2024 national championship at the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, was close to becoming the new manager of Major League Baseball’s San Francisco Giants. Should Vitello leave for the Giants, the 47-year-old would become the first college coach to become an MLB manager without having any previous experience in professional baseball.
“The decision on whether Tennessee coach Tony Vitello will be the next manager of the San Francisco Giants is expected to come in the next 24 to 72 hours,” ESPN baseball analyst Jeff Passan said Saturday afternoon through a social media post. “Vitello has emerged as the top target of the Giants, but the sides have yet to reach a deal.
“The buyout on Vitello’s contract at Tennessee is $3 million, according to sources.”
The Athletic was the first to report San Francisco’s interest in Vitello, who has guided the Vols to a 341-131 record (72.2%) with five trips to the NCAA super regional round, three journeys to the CWS and the program’s first national title. The Vols are the only college baseball program to reach the super regionals each of the past five NCAA tournaments.
Vitello’s ninth Tennessee team has already conducted several scrimmages inside Lindsey Nelson Stadium and staged one Oct. 4 at AT&T Field. He was asked before coming to Chattanooga about the reports linking him to the Giants job that became available when Bob Melvin was fired on Sept. 29 after going 80-82 and 81-81 in his two seasons.
“I think because our players have performed well, and a lot of that has to do with our support staff in the weight room and our academic coordinator, a lot of the credit gets filtered down to me for whatever reason,” Vitello said. “It’s been wild because truth be told, there are a lot of jobs open. There are naturally ideas that get thrown around a whole bunch, and you never know how some people are going to handle this stuff.
“I’m interested to see who’s coaching (Los Angeles Angels teammates and former Vols) Christian Moore and Ben Joyce, for instance, and it will be a wild offseason. There are a lot of free agents available in baseball, too.”
The fall scrimmage earlier this month at AT&T Field drew 4,029 fans, a total that would have been unheard of when Vitello agreed to take Tennessee’s reins in the summer of 2017 after spending four seasons as an Arkansas assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Vitello had previously served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Missouri, his alma mater, from 2004-10 and at TCU from 2011-13.
Tennessee scrimmaged Saturday in Knoxville, and Vitello met with his players afterward. When asked by the Knoxville News-Sentinel about reports of his potential departure, Vitello said “nothing is done.”
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.