It’s hard to figure out Buster Posey.
Every day since he sat down in the big chair has felt like a high-wire act. Each move carries the weight that it could flame out spectacularly or succeed overwhelmingly.
None more so than Posey’s latest zag.
Tony Vitello will be the Giants’ next manager. He’s leaving the University of Tennessee as the first manager to ever leap from college to the pros with no MLB coaching experience.
In a way, Posey hired a version of himself: someone with a track record of success—Vitello’s team won the College World Series last year—but no one-to-one experience in his new job.
I find myself thinking, feeling, and wondering the same things as I did when Posey started.
Will he surround himself with a veteran coaching staff?
Will he do this job significantly different than everyone else? Embarrassingly different?
And of course, the ultimate question: Will it work?
The only thing we can say for the certain is that Posey and the Giants are not boring.
A first-time executive in the driver’s seat. A first-time MLB manager in the passenger seat. A veteran-laden roster worth $175 million shoved in the back.
What could go wrong?
🎧 Podcast: The Giants won’t introduce Vitello for another week but Kerry and I will fill the gap. New episode of Giants Postcards coming your way soon.