LAS VEGAS — New Giants manager Tony Vitello visited the general manager meetings this week to hang out with the team’s brain trust and continue to adjust to the big-league lifestyle amid his historic transition from the University of Tennessee.

Vitello, 47 — a St. Louis native who attended Giants-Cardinals games at Busch Stadium as a kid, played at the University of Missouri and grew to a wildly successful NCAA coach in Knoxville, Tennessee — is compiling a coaching staff, reaching out to players, and determining where he’ll reside in San Francisco.

In an exclusive interview with The Standard on Wednesday, in a hallway off the beaten path at the Cosmopolitan Hotel along the Vegas Strip, Vitello opened up on becoming the 40th manager in franchise history.

Are you going to live in the city?

Yeah, close to the park. It’d be nice to be within a 10- or 15-minute walk. There’s a couple of properties that my brother-in-law has looked at. Probably need to find a place in Arizona too.

You spent time in San Francisco when playing and coaching for the Salinas Packers summer team in the early 2000s. You’d go to Giants games and watch your old friend from St. Louis, Bill Mueller. Then recently returned for your introductory press conference.

I loved it back in the day. We had an absolute blast at the games, around the city, navigating a kind of a tourist approach to it. This time, the people were the part that stood out. I interacted with more people as opposed to my younger days, and the people seem extraordinary, not just the ones involved with the Giants, but the ones I came across. I walked around town a bunch. I had several different meals, and it was a real positive experience.

What stands out with the city’s culture?

The variety of just where people are from, where people focus their energy. Obviously, the tech field is something that gets talked about a lot, but also just the variety of the places from one street to the next, whether it’s restaurants, bars, shopping, or anything else that’s available. There’s a wide range of options and different backgrounds.

You’re a single guy. Not to cross a line here, but you know there’s got to be a list that comes out including you as one of the city’s most eligible bachelors.

I don’t know about that. Ultimately, when I’m asked that question, why am I single or not married, work has probably been the biggest deterrent. I don’t know if that theme’s ever going to go away. Not necessarily that I outwork everybody. It’s just something where I’ve invested my most time, and my thoughts are usually geared toward trying to do a better job. We’ll see how that life balance works out at the next level.

You were a successful recruiter in college. Will you help recruit players to the Giants?

Maybe a little bit. I think it’s about getting to know people more than anything. Time is always a factor when it comes to trust, and we’re starting from scratch. We’re ground zero. One thing that’ll be discussed all year long is my lack of experience. So an easy cheat code for trust is, “Hey, I’m Michael Jordan, trust me, this is how you shoot a free throw.” Everyone literally on the globe is going to listen to what he has to say there. So it’s a different set of circumstances for me.

Joe Maddon went on KNBR and said your hiring is “insulting” because you have no pro experience and are coming directly from college and didn’t go through the minors or work your way up in the traditional way. What’s your reaction?

I get it. I just wonder if he’ll still take my call, because he was on my list of people that I wanted to call and seek out advice. There’s a couple of very specific reasons for that with his history. So I wonder if he’ll still take that call. I’ve used him as an example often in recruiting. One thing we did at Tennessee was really try to allow guys to be who they are. That kind of became our brand name, and that’s something that he did with the Cubs in particular. 

Are you offended? He did wish you well and said he’s rooting for you to make it work.

Not at the moment. Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion. For me as I sit here, if it truly is an insult, then that is a segue to saying it’s not going to work. So if it doesn’t work, the Giants will be just fine. I’ll be the one that suffers in that situation. You start with, “What is going on in college baseball that can help in pro baseball?” And then you go back to college with, “Hey, this is what I learned in pro baseball.” Regardless, it’s a beneficial situation for some people in baseball, and you’re talking about a guy who’s done an enormous amount in baseball in Joe.

Bruce Bochy joined Dusty Baker as an adviser in the Giants’ front office, and you’ve been in discussions with both. How has that been received?

There’s times with this job where you feel you’re almost lost in the forest and you’re going to have to find your way. And then you talk to those guys, and you feel like you’re in a Marvel movie and you’ve got a force field or a Captain America shield that can help you with anything. If it’s about the game, anything those guys say, you can fully take it to the bank. It’s very helpful and comforting and builds confidence in the back of your mind.

How much will you embrace franchise history? Last spring, Buster invited a dozen or more former players to spend a week apiece in uniform and work with the players. It was a big change from the Farhan Zaidi-Gabe Kapler years and very much welcomed.

Yeah, as long as I get some autographs. I joke about being a fan, but it’s definitely a situation where it’s, pun intended, using bridges around the city. And we do need to have a bridge to the past. We’ve got an easy one in Buster with how successful an era that was, but Buster wasn’t the only guy. Hunter Pence did things on the field, but more importantly, all the great things I’ve heard about him in the clubhouse. I grew up watching some of the most intense games ever in pro baseball with Will Clark’s Giants and the Cardinals. Boy, if they could have Jeffrey Leonard’s head on a platter in St. Louis, they would have gotten it done. And Kevin Mitchell. You ask, Why were those teams so fun to watch? Where did their intensity come from? What contributed to the success level that they had? And how can we make that a part of what we’ve got going on now or what we’re looking to do?

Have you hooked up with all the veterans: Willy Adames, Rafael Devers, Matt Chapman, Logan Webb, and Jung Hoo Lee?

I mean, Willy’s pretty impressive. He’s carrying a reputation with people in pro baseball who have been around him, whether they’re coaches or teammates, that’s pretty tough to beat. You can sense he’s got that character. Webby, I was actually able to hook up with him in person. I think very soon here, we’ll be able to get with Chapman. His feedback [over the phone] was really useful on the hitting part. Just kind of what he’s looking for, the mental game, too. Probably the first week of December, we’ll be with [Rafael] Devers in the Dominican, me and [Jayce] Tingler. Visiting Jung Hoo in South Korea is a possibility in January.

How close are you to solidifying your coaching staff? We know Tingler and hitting coach Hunter Mense will be on staff, and Oscar Bernard, Taira Uematsu, and Eliezer Zambrano were told they’ll be back. We don’t know yet about Mark Hallberg and Alex Burg. Buster did say Ron Wotus will be back in his same role.

Definitely past the 50-yard line. I think the foundational work has been put in. Next is kind of the domino effect of, if we’re going to get this guy, who complements him the most out of this? So I think things will go quicker than slower.

Are analytics a must for any coach?

Oh, yeah. It’s certainly emphasized in different levels for different people and in different organizations, but I think some of the information that’s out there has gotten, pun intended, off the charts with the things you can learn about an opponent or about your own players, and to some extent, that stuff needs to be utilized.

Jayce Tingler has managing experience in San Diego and figures to be a right-hand man for you in the dugout. How can your old Missouri teammate benefit you?

This is an accumulation of conversations for almost two decades. We’ve talked about him coming to college or me going to the pros and us working together — a partnership that we had thought about for a long time. What title or what duties go with it, I think it’ll be more clear when we know who else is on the staff and how we want to divvy things up. It’s two guys who want to accomplish as much as possible by helping each other.

What about Bill Mueller? He was a popular Giants third baseman and, given your relationship with him, would be a natural fit to return to the organization.

I’ve already — during the decision process and afterward — used him as counsel and will continue to do that. I know he’s stuck around home a little bit, but Bill will be in the park and will help me, for sure. Living in Arizona, Bill will be there during spring training and prior to spring training will be a big help organizing what we want to do.

You’ve had some time to go over the roster and the 2025 season. What are the team’s strengths and weaknesses?

I like the leadership factor. I wasn’t a part of last year’s team, so I don’t know if I’m speaking out of turn, but the impression I get is there are some guys who fully have the capability to lead and want to lead. That core group of guys that was on the field last year and on the mound are guys that have been successful and I think are more on a trajectory moving forward as opposed to fizzling out in their career. The big X factor, as I’ve dived deep into the roster: There’s some young guys that could explode onto the scene if things click for them the right way, or at the very least, could be household names in San Francisco by being legitimate everyday guys on the mound or the field.

Among the inefficiencies — base running, outfield defense, depth issues, hitting funks, strikeouts — what stands out?

That’s all been talked about. You’re in the media, you know negativity always overpowers positivity. But also through changes, you want to analyze what adjustments need to be made. You’re going to push forward and make adjustments. The effort in those conversations don’t guarantee statistical success. You hope it does. But I think just taking the right approach at making some adjustments will be a focal point in spring training and the early part of the season

Do you realize all eyes will be on you? First day of spring training, first day of the season; fans, opponents, the media, the front office, your players — everyone will be intrigued.

I just know that no matter how life goes for me, I don’t want it to be choreographed. I want to be true to myself, and when that moment comes, I guess I’ll roll with the punches and feel that I need to be in that moment. That’s probably the cleanest way to say it. Our first game [March 25 at Oracle Park] is the only game that day. It’s the Yankees. It’s a home game. It’s my first. So all those things have been very well thought about. But when things actually kick off, it’s going to be some pretty good players on our team and some pretty good players on their team who’ll decide who wins the game. I just want to do my part, but I’m certainly not going to have the influence those other guys will.