The Giants are “closing in on hiring” Univ. of Tennessee baseball coach Tony Vitello, according to sources. Vitello transformed Tennessee from an “SEC bottom-feeder into one of the most talent-rich programs in the country.” But his hiring would be an “extraordinary and nearly unprecedented leap for someone with no professional coaching experience.” Giants President of Baseball Operations Buster Posey was “seeking a big personality who could imbue the Giants’ clubhouse with confidence,” and Vitello’s “dynamism and charisma have been on full display in both his recruiting efforts and the Volunteers’ brash and buoyant style of play.” Vitello is the second-highest-paid coach in D-I with an annual salary of more than $3M, meaning he was “already making more than half the managers in the major leagues” (THE ATHLETIC, 10/18).
Report: S.F. Giants near deal to hire Tennessee’s Tony Vitello
