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The Giants aren’t close to becoming the most talented team in the major leagues. But they’ve suddenly become the most cutting-edge.

At least with their choice of a new manager.

For the first time, a college head coach is jumping straight from the NCAA to manage a Major League Baseball team. Tony Vitello is the Giants’ new manager in a hiring that signals, more than ever, that Buster Posey’s fingerprints are all over this organization.

Vitello, 47, was the head coach at the University of Tennessee since 2018 and guided the Volunteers to the 2024 College World Series title.

“I’m excited to lead this group of players and represent the San Francisco Giants,” Vitello said in a statement released by the Giants. “I can’t wait to get started and work to establish a culture that makes Giants faithful proud.”

Three prominent Giants prospects were coached by Vitello: outfielder Drew Gilbert and pitcher Blade Tidwell, acquired from the Mets at the trade deadline, and infielder Gavin Kilen, the team’s top 2025 draft choice.

But that’s not why Posey hired Vitello. Posey saw a leader with energy and charisma who could help turn the Giants into a consistent winner after they missed the playoffs eight of the past nine years. Of course, Posey had to be open to a completely different leadership style than Vitello’s predecessor, Bob Melvin, or even the analytic-driven Gabe Kapler, who preceded Melvin.

“Tony is one of the brightest, most innovative, and most respected coaches in college baseball today,” Posey said in a statement. “Throughout our search, Tony’s leadership, competitiveness, and commitment to developing players stood out. His ability to lead strong, cohesive teams and his passion for the game align perfectly with the values of our organization.”

Vitello has dealt mostly with teenagers and young adults in their early 20s, recruiting kids out of high school and playing a pivotal role in their physical and educational development, some of whom were good enough to get drafted.

Conversely, on the Giants, Vitello will deal with grown men who are far removed from their amateur days. The average age of Giants hitters in 2025 was 28.2. The pitchers’ average age was 29.8. These are accomplished professionals who have trained and played a certain way, and while it wouldn’t be advantageous for Vitello to try to reinvent the game, his methods and practices will be closely monitored (and judged) by players and fans.

It shouldn’t be difficult to push the young players who are trying to make a name for themselves at the big-league level. The tougher trick is to keep the established stars motivated and focused throughout the grind of a long season, one of the most important duties of a manager.

The question is, how will Willy Adames, Rafael Devers, Matt Chapman, and Logan Webb respond to Vitello’s leadership?

Any good college coach constantly stresses the importance of fundamentals, and that was an area in which the 81-81 Giants severely lacked at times this season. From mental defensive lapses to baserunning blunders to hitting approaches that failed, the Giants are a team that needs to upgrade across the board.

The most important followup to the Vitello hire is building a coaching staff around a manager who has zero experience in pro ball. No doubt Vitello has allies he’d like to bring aboard, but Posey and general manager Zack Minasian assuredly will have a heavy hand on constructing the staff.

Posey said at his Oct. 1 news conference that the idea of an associate manager is “interesting.” It’s a role that’s becoming more common across the majors — someone who works under the manager but provides another essential voice beyond the bench coach. In this case, it could be a grizzled baseball guru who’d be at Vitello’s side to give guidance or answer questions in real time.

Either way, it’s a significant financial investment for Posey and the ownership group. Vitello had a $3 million salary at Tennessee, according to D1 Baseball, and likely wouldn’t have bolted without a salary that’s at least comparable. The Giants also are on the hook for the final year of Melvin’s contract, believed to be in the $4 million range.

It shows how much Posey values a field manager. With the analytics movement, managers became more of a middle-management position, which was reflected in their downsized salaries. Over time, managers had less say with their daily lineups, pitching moves, and roster construction as front offices heavily relied on analytics personnel in the decision-making process.

In the Farhan Zaidi administration, the front office had a heavy hand on how Kapler and Melvin ran a game, but Posey gave Melvin and his staff more freedom to call the shots in 2025. Moving on from Melvin, it wouldn’t be surprising if Posey or Minasian, along with the Giants’ analytics folks, work more closely with Vitello to form a collaborative game plan on a daily basis.

While many examples could be cited for college football and basketball coaches jumping to the NFL and NBA, respectively, Vitello is breaking ground in baseball. The closest recent example is Pat Murphy, the Brewers’ manager who coached at Arizona State. But Murphy managed in the Padres’ organization between his ASU and Milwaukee stints.

Vitello began his college coaching career in 2003 as an assistant at Missouri, his alma mater, and moved to Texas Christian and then Arkansas before landing the Tennessee gig in June 2017 and quickly turning the Volunteers into one of the nation’s premier programs. They’re 341-131 under Vitello and reached the College World Series in 2021, 2023, and 2024, winning it all last year.