For a second straight day, Tennessee Volunteers baseball was the hottest topic in the San Francisco Giants dugout, where reporters asked former Vols coach Tony Vitello to clarify his comments regarding his departure from UT.
"I didn’t say anything surprising that I know of. I was just stating the facts," Vitello said during a media availability on Feb. 17 at spring training in Scottsdale, Arizona. "If somebody tweets out or says something that’s not true about you and affects your life significantly – not just a deal where your feelings are hurt, but has a significant impact on my family … the (Tennessee) team was my family – then I’m not going to be happy about it."
News of Vitello's departure for San Francisco first dropped on Oct. 18, which was rebutted at the time by Vitello, who told Knox News "nothing is done." The hiring was announced Oct. 22.
Tony Vitello was asked about yesterday's comments.
— Matt Lively (@mattblively) February 17, 2026
Said no one from the Giants addressed it with him & was just stating facts. He talked about the "change the course of history" comment and how that nothing would've changed b/t him and Posey.
(Apologies for some bad audio) pic.twitter.com/JwegaaooZk
On Feb. 16, Vitello expressed frustration that he felt reporters at national outlets, as well as the Bay Area, jumped the gun in reporting that he was leaving Tennessee. He doubled down when asked to clarify his remarks the next day.
Either Vitello won't let it go or Giants reporters have accurately sensed a raw nerve, or both.
"It’s just like I would want our (Giants) players to defend themselves. That’s what I would do. But it’s kind of hard to defend yourself if it’s an anonymous tip," Vitello said, referring to October reports of his hiring that cited unnamed sources.
"... I think the facts of the case were what I just said. Anyone else would react the exact same way. And it has no real impact on the opportunity that was presented and it wouldn’t have changed what (Giants president of baseball operations) Buster (Posey) and I agreed to do."
Why Giants are hearing what Tony Vitello said in Knoxville
Vitello's recollection of his departure from Tennessee is old news in Knoxville. On Oct. 23, the day after the Giants hired him, he told Knox News how it went down. He said he had not made a decision about the Giants job when news broke, but he had to address it with his shocked UT staff and players at the time.
But reporters who cover the Giants are just now getting a clear picture of Vitello's thoughts about his Tennessee exit. He opened that can of worms, and he might find it difficult to close.
But Vitello, in his typical fashion, warned reporters that he'll often say whatever is on his mind with very little filter.
"I wouldn’t take what I say too seriously," Vitello said. "I mean we were talking about (rapper) Lil Wayne yesterday (during a media availability)."
Vitello was the first sitting college baseball coach to make the direct jump into an MLB manager role without prior professional experience. In eight seasons at Tennessee, he went 341-131, leading the Vols to the 2024 College World Series championship while also claiming two SEC regular season titles and two SEC Tournament titles.
Tennessee replaced Vitello by promoting Josh Elander, an assistant since 2018. The Vols started their season on Feb. 13.
Vitello makes his managerial debut when the Giants play Seattle Mariners in spring training on Feb. 21.
Adam Sparks is the Tennessee beat reporter. Email [email protected]. X, formerly known as Twitter@AdamSparks. Support strong local journalism by subscribing atknoxnews.com/subscribe.
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Giants' Tony Vitello is still talking about Tennessee baseball