Max Scherzer says he ‘absolutely’ believes in Tony Vitello as Giants manager
Published:
Amidst the frenzy that is the college football season and the build-up to college basketball’s return, college baseball made major headlines Wednesday when Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello was officially announced as the next leader of the San Francisco Giants.
With the idea of a college coach making the leap to the majors drawing mixed reviews from many, some of Vitello’s past colleagues and players have been sharing their perspective on how their former peer will fare.
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Specifically, current Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer addressed the news, with him expressing his full confidence in Vitello’s ability to find success in the MLB.
“I absolutely believe in him,” Scherzer said. “He’s to this day one of my closest friends and I absolutely believe he’s gonna get it done at the big-league level.”
Scherzer pitched under the tutelage of Vitello while playing for Missouri from 2004-2006, which was when he broke out into a rising star before being drafted 11th in the 2006 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Vitello takes over a San Francisco franchise that is fresh off an 81-81 campaign, which resulted in the firing of former manager Bob Melvin.
The Volunteers went 52-10 (16-14 in the SEC) during Vitello’s last season at the helm, bowing out in the Super Regionals after claiming the 2024 National Championship. He arrived in Knoxville prior to the 2018 campaign.
Parker is currently the sports editor with the Enterprise-Journal in McComb, Mississippi. He's a graduate from Mizzou who has experience covering the Tiger football and basketball beats for SB Nation, and he's worked for a variety of sports news outlets in the past.
