This is almost too difficult to fathom. Ever since he took over as the leader of the Tennessee baseball clubhouse, Tony Vitello has been beloved all over Knoxville. No one ever wanted to think about the day of him leaving town, but it's happening much sooner than any of us could have imagined.
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In a stunning turn of events, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal has reported that the San Francisco Giants are finalizing a deal to make Vitello the NL West club's new manager. Earlier this month, rumors swirled that Vitello could be in the running for an MLB gig, but the hope was that Danny White would find a way to keep him on board. That's not going to be the case.
BREAKING: Tennessee head baseball coach Tony Vitello is closing in on deal to become the San Francisco Giants manager, @TheAthletic reports. https://t.co/JHAGMzcrAZ pic.twitter.com/JkIEtCCdGY
— On3 (@On3sports) October 18, 2025
Tennessee's Tony Vitello is reportedly finalzing a deal to become the Giants' new manager
Who in the world saw this coming? Vitello first joined Tennessee in 2018 after several years as an assistant for Missouri, TCU and Arkansas. He got his first HC opportunity with the Vols and he took full advantage of things, posting well over 300 wins with the program.
No one will ever forget the history that Tony V was able to accomplish while donning a Vols uniform, which of course included the 2024 College World Series title. It was the first national championship ever for Tennessee baseball and it's something that people will always cherish.
Vitello has been crushing it out on the recruiting trail too, which has only made people even more excited for the 2026 season to get here. However, this latest breaking news from Rosenthal now throws everything into a loop.
White is going to have to work overtime to find a suitable replacement, but that's not going to be an easy task. Vitello was a rockstar in Knoxville and he was the textbook definition of a fan favorite. We can't sugarcoat things here. This is a massive, massive loss for Tennessee as a whole.