Giants Bulletin: Humble yet confident Vitello lays out his vision for Giants

There doesn’t seem to be a fake bone in Tony Vitello’s body. That’s no groundbreaking revelation if you are at all familiar with his decorated college tenure, but it was further confirmed on Thursday, as he was formally introduced as the 40th manager in the storied history of the Giants in front of a packed crowd of media, Giants employees, and plenty of Vitello’s family and friends. 

He didn’t pound his fist on the podium and declare that the Giants would suddenly run the National League West in his first year at the helm. He didn’t mention divisional adversaries by name, much to the chagrin of some fans who would have loved to hear such rhetoric. Vitello was humble yet deeply confident. He projected a command of the role that no one with his resume has ever obtained, while acknowledging that reality sometimes in the same sentence. 

Every player he coached at the Division I college level shared a dream; Making it to the Major Leagues. For the longest time, Vitello didn’t share that dream for himself, until he did. “I never dreamed of being a Major League baseball player, I think it was just so far above the clouds that I never even saw it,” Vitello explained. “As a coach I was just trying to do a good job, and fortunately that helped me get to the next spot and the next spot. And eventually it did become a dream. And I decided if I was blessed enough to receive an opportunity, this was something I wanted to do.” 

Doing a good job was an early theme in Vitello’s introductory presser. The blue collar phrase popularized to some degree by Bill Belichick constantly imploring his linemen to do their jobs, Vitello credits his simple commitment to the sentence as a propellor for his coaching career. “As much as I’d love to sit up here and promise things and pound my fist on the desk,” he started. “All I want to do is a good job.” 

The personable nature that every great college coach has was evident from the jump as well. Vitello joked that he may have to punish Bryce Eldridge, who turned down Tennessee in favor of a verbal commitment to Alabama before foregoing college baseball altogether, by making him run. When asked how he might adjust his famous fiery dugout nature to fit the length of a marathon 162 game schedule, Vitello cracked that if you asked his mother she’d probably tell him to tone it down, but that his father might suggest he take it up a notch. 

If you followed the saga of his hiring as it unfolded, you know that the decision to leave his perch as the king of Tennessee baseball was an agonizing one. He lauded the fans and people of the University, but also likened all of those positive traits to what he believes is the same in San Francisco. He praised the fan base, and emphasized the importance of cultivating a relationship and trust. You get out what you put in, and Vitello is planning on putting in his entire being. 

Vitello also flexed his Giants historical knowledge, especially recent history. He revealed that he was in attendance for game seven of the 2014 World Series in Kansas City, sitting behind home plate. The intensity of the bottom of the ninth that evening was a shared experience for Vitello and Giants fans. Buster Posey, seated to Vitello’s right on Thursday and also behind home plate that night, concurred. 

Much of what has made Tony Vitello famous besides his program’s success has been his personality. Ejections, chirps, viral postgame media comments, all of the above were abundant during his time in Tennessee. He reminded everyone on Thursday that viral clips and public perception doesn’t tell the whole story. “Twitter isn’t real life.” 

If you didn’t like the Tony Vitello hire when it happened because of how unprecedented it is and his lack of professional experience, his introductory presser didn’t bend over backwards to move you from that position. But it should show you that he is dead set on doing that by winning. There will surely be ways Tony Vitello recalibrates his demeanor to better fit a Major League season. But by all indications, his personality and the way he fosters relationships won’t change. And for the Giants, that’s a good thing. Why should they want anyone other than who they hired?