Tony Vitello Needs To Control The Situation

[00:00:00]You're this kid's off the team. He's cut. He's gone. Night night. See you later. Go to the transfer portal, dude.

[00:00:07]You're gone.

[00:00:10]Tony, you need to get a hold of the situation now. Now.

[00:00:14]Maybe he did some Maybe he did some What if I told you we find out tomorrow behind closed doors he had a conversation with him? Would that change at all how you feel about about him or Dever's going forward? I think it I think it matters that he No, no, no, no, but I do think it matters that he didn't do it publicly then. I think it needed to be public. I think the fan base and the media and everyone needed to know that hey, this is my team and that ain't going to fly around here. Like he needed to flex his muscles yesterday and I'm very disappointed in Tony Vitello that he didn't do that. He had a golden opportunity in a losing season to say this is my team. This is not going to happen and you're not bigger than the team, Raffy. I don't give a damn they're making $300 million. He had an opportunity to do that yesterday and he squandered it. And I thought we were getting a different manager than what we've gotten in Tony and yesterday kind of solidified it for me. I'm very disappointed if I'm a Giants fan, very.

[00:01:09]>> All right, so here here's the Tejada incident that I I got the whole thing pulled up right here. It's August 30th, 2011. Remember the Giants had won the World Series the year before.

[00:01:19]Posey's out for the year. They bring in Beltran. They got Tejada.

[00:01:25]Sunday night, it's the 11th inning.

[00:01:29]Flannery puts down the bunt sign from third base.

[00:01:32]>> Hey, man.

[00:01:33]>> And Tejada shakes his head.

[00:01:38]Eventually he ends up putting the bunt down and then doesn't hustle down the line.

[00:01:42]>> Huh.

[00:01:44]>> This is what he said after the game to John Shea.

[00:01:48]I shook my head. I was thinking I was sent up to hit. After that, I did my job. I put the bunt down. I'm not the only guy who was surprised yesterday yesterday that I got the bunt sign.

[00:01:59]The very next day he was released.

[00:02:03]And here's what he says. This is my my favorite.

[00:02:06]"I just work here." Teoscar said.

[00:02:08]"Whatever the manager tells me to do, I got to do. I respect the manager and my team and my teammates. He tells me to do it, I'll do it."

[00:02:17]It's the way I'm going to go help the team. Clearly his actions pissed off everyone and they quite frankly DFA'd him the very next day.

[00:02:27]That's what that thought I got you can't do that with Devers obviously.

[00:02:30]>> that with Devers.

[00:02:31]>> That's what I was saying. And I know you bring up the Latel one. I think of of Teoscar doing that to a still a young staff in Boston but they had just won the World Series. So, I don't know.

[00:02:41]>> you think Raffy does this to Bob Melvin?

[00:02:45]I don't know.

[00:02:46]>> I don't know.

[00:02:46]>> Yeah, I don't know.

[00:02:47]>> Possibly. I mean did it to Alex Cora. He he hit a ground ball that a guy misplayed and just jogged down the line.

[00:02:53]I saw it in my mentions yesterday from all the Red Sox fans. I mean he just didn't care at all at the end in Boston.

[00:02:59]>> He didn't He wanted out.

[00:03:00]>> he was doing his best sabotage job there.

[00:03:03]>> And right now it doesn't look like he gives a damn with the San Francisco Giants. The guy's been mediocre. You were promised or at least Giants fans felt like they were promised from Buster Posey that they were getting out worse the top 10 hitter in all of baseball and he's been bad. Quite frankly, he just has not been good. You can try to sell me on advanced metrics and you know, all this other crap. The guy hasn't been good. He's not a good base runner. Oh, but his glove has been above average. I don't really give a damn about his glove at first base if the guy's batting 235.

[00:03:31]And the rest of my team can't score.

[00:03:33]>> His glove has been decent. Let's pump the brakes on oh, he's so good. We're we're ready to give this guy a Nobel Peace Prize because he he got a couple out. It's a joke. I mean give me a break.

[00:03:44]>> what great. You better be doing that if you're making that much money and you're not batting over 250. You're a 238 hitter this season.

[00:03:52]>> think Devers is all that get on base, either.

[00:03:54]>> I think the the issue is is Dever's just doesn't want to be here.

[00:03:56]>> No.

[00:03:57]>> He doesn't want to be [clears throat] here. And so, I You know what? And I don't think Giants fans want him here at this point.

[00:04:01]>> They're done. I'm done. No, I don't Well, Giants fans, are you done with this guy after yesterday? 888-957-9570.

[00:04:07]>> Really, my question now comes down to like, you know, I love this team, but the direction that they're going in, I got major, major Tony Vitello questions.

[00:04:18]Major, major. I'm like out on on Wilie, and I'm out on Raffy. I just don't think they can be the leaders of your team moving forward. I do not want to trade Chapman right now. I don't. I don't want to trade Arraez right now. Um they need to reallocate whatever money that they don't use to buy down the contracts to get rid of these guys, right? They need to put that into the bullpen, and they need to draft young, controllable pitching from here on out.

[00:04:44]>> You know what's even more just alarming, too? And we've talked about it all season, but the situation itself, why you brought Jonah Cox on um as a as a pinch runner, is cuz you wanted a stolen base. You wanted a guy that's on the base paths. If you get a, you know, an RBI double or something, an RBI, obviously, you think he's going to get in. You look at the stolen bases this year for the Giants as a team.

[00:05:04]>> Let me guess. The leader is at seven.

[00:05:07]>> I'm just going team, John.

[00:05:08]>> Is it seven? I think so. I think it's Luis Arraez, right?

[00:05:10]>> 16 as a team.

[00:05:12]>> Oh, it way better than that. 25.

[00:05:16]>> They have 25 stolen bases. Not even the worst in all baseball.

[00:05:19]>> They beat the Houston Astros by one, so there's that.

[00:05:22]You know who's the leader in stolen bases >> this year?

[00:05:26]>> Yeah. The te- the team leader.

[00:05:28]The team you saw yesterday.

[00:05:30]The Miami Marlins have 87.

[00:05:33]>> I mean >> 87. Let me do my math real quick. That is a 62 more.

[00:05:40]>> I mean, it's not surprising.

[00:05:41]>> I mean, oh my god.

[00:05:42]>> I mean, they've got And they've got guys that put the ball in play. They got Otto Lopez, and um Xavier Edwards is having a great year.

[00:05:49]>> I mean it's one thing if for the Los Angeles Dodgers who only by the way have 31 stolen bases, but they make up for it elsewhere.

[00:05:56]You can't make up for this on this team.

[00:06:00]And when you try to, the guy doesn't even attempt to steal.

[00:06:03]>> I want you to think about this.

[00:06:04]>> He doesn't even attempt to steal when you bring him on. It was all for nothing, Joe.

[00:06:11]>> Eldridge has the best OPS on the team.

[00:06:13]Casey's got the second best. All right?

[00:06:17]Jung Hoo Lee is is third and Rize is fourth.

[00:06:21]You know who's the bottom These are your everyday players. You know who's at the bottom?

[00:06:25]>> Who?

[00:06:26]>> Susac. Again, he doesn't catch everyday.

[00:06:29]>> No.

[00:06:29]>> Gilbert. And then you go in order.

[00:06:32]Chapman.

[00:06:35]Devers and Adams.

[00:06:36]>> Damn.

[00:06:37]Three highest paid players.

[00:06:39]Right there, staring you in the face.

[00:06:41]Something needs to change. Let's ride on YouTube.

[00:06:45]>> Devers was in the right.

[00:06:47]>> Oh, he's in the right.

[00:06:48]>> What was he right about?

[00:06:50]>> defending >> What was he in the right about?

[00:06:51]>> That's what I want to know.

[00:06:52]>> Not wanting to come out of the game.

[00:06:53]>> Is anyone defending Raffy Devers?

[00:06:55]>> If this was Jock Peterson at first base, and he pulled the exact same stunt, wouldn't we be equally outraged?

[00:07:04]>> Yeah.

[00:07:05]And there was a lot there with Jock Peterson. The Tommy Pham stuff, the Pasquale problem in the clubhouse, just the the body.

[00:07:13]>> All of that.

[00:07:14]>> I'm asking. Like if If this were Jock Peterson, like we would say get him out of here. Now, I know that Raffy obviously has a way better resume and has way more years under team control under his belt.

[00:07:27]Belt. And like but the same things apply. You're not bigger than the team, dude.

[00:07:32]>> No, you're not.

[00:07:34]Um it's funny. I saw a couple of these kind of tweets yesterday.

[00:07:37]And it was I think it was New York Kenny, our producer here.

[00:07:40]Sometimes he fills in as a host.

[00:07:41]>> What he say?

[00:07:42]>> Uh, he didn't He thought it was a big nothing burger, quite frankly. He thought it was just the heat of the moment kind of a thing. It's a player that wants it. And you know what? He's pissed off because of the season.

[00:07:50]>> Wants what? Wants what?

[00:07:51]>> He wants to be a difference maker on the base paths for his team. And he thought he got on base and he >> You're not that guy, pal. You're not that guy.

[00:07:58]>> He's delusional enough to think he is.

[00:07:59]>> that guy.

[00:08:00]>> He thought he was. Thought he had earned the right for getting that that walk to finish it out on the base paths.

[00:08:06]>> Roger Dorn.

[00:08:08]It's insane.

[00:08:10]It's insane. Hey Tony though, do you appreciate Dever's wanting to stay in?

[00:08:14]>> I have no problem with Raffy. Like I said, we talk every day. He's one of the most entertaining guys to be around. He probably wants to win as much as anybody in that clubhouse. And like I said, he he wants to stay in the game. And also, we've talked during this road trip about how he feels and obviously part of how he feels is he's 100% good to go running-wise. And you guys have seen it.

[00:08:35]Other people comment, front office, whatever. He's probably been our best guy going first to third. Um, so it's not like he can't score on a double. And you Now you're two to two. You'd like to have what you think your best players are out on the field. Um, but again, in a perfect world, you'd like to see Cox go get a bag at second if he can.

[00:08:53]Um, you know, it's he's got to read what he's got going on over there. Um, but at the very least, if you go down, you go down swinging with your fastest guy over there.

[00:09:01]>> Not a big I can't get over this not a big deal thing. Like, it is a big deal.

[00:09:05]When when Rich Aurilia, who has been in the game for as long as he has, says you don't show up your teammates, you don't show up your coach, you don't show up your staff, you don't show up the other peers on that team, and the young guys in your organization like that, it is a big deal. And then you you don't have the cojones to stand in front of the media and talk, like it is a big deal.

[00:09:28]And then Logan Webb is the one who has to speak on your behalf.

[00:09:31]It is a big deal. And then Casey Schmitt and Matt Chapman have to speak on your behalf. It is a big deal. You're you're you're getting paid the most on the team. It is a big deal. I'm sorry. Look, we we got to live in in reality and not La La Land. We we we we like when you have an issue or you do something, you got to man up and move on, right?

[00:09:54]>> It'd be one thing if this team and it was that was the first thing in this team is he's playing competitive and he wants to be out there and he's getting pissed off if the team is like playing well and he was playing well and he wants to stay in the game. But the fact is you're 15 games under 500. You've batted 235 the last season, Ruffy.

[00:10:12]You're a slow-ass base runner. You're not I don't give a damn about your first-to-third or and by the way, Tony thinking that that guy could score on a double just willy-nilly. Has he seen the problems with the base running on this team this season? No, that's another thing that he's like refusing to acknowledge. You've been a bad base running team. You had to fire your third base coach basically.

[00:10:31]It for a decade.

[00:10:32]>> bad base running team for a decade.

[00:10:34]>> But specifically under this year, you had to reassign your third base coach.

[00:10:37]>> I know.

[00:10:38]>> Like, come on, man.

[00:10:39]>> the first base coach yesterday during the whole thing is oh, >> you just stood there.

[00:10:43]Coach, please. The guy was he was an innocent bystander, it felt like. I don't want to get involved. I don't want to get Then what are you there for? Like seriously. Cuz that's what he's telling me. What are you here to do, Tony? Do the Giants have a manager right now?

[00:10:57]It doesn't feel like it, which sucks.

[00:10:58]>> It to The only other way to interpret it, even if you're the biggest Tony Vitello fan, is Well, it looks like he's essentially cannot coach this group of guys.

[00:11:11]>> No.

[00:11:11]>> He's in over his head. That's what it looks like.

[00:11:13]>> And you know what? That was a major question mark heading into the season from people that questioned this move.

[00:11:18]Was that can he handle a major league roster? Can he handle adults? Not college students.

[00:11:26]Not not not, you know, 21, 22-year-olds, 18, 19-year-olds. Can he handle a 29-year-old making $300 million that is moving on from a team because of his inability to be a good teammate and accept the new position? So, you bring him in here where he does accept the new position, but even that is questionable at times.

[00:11:50]And he not he Now, you can't even pinch run for him?

[00:11:54]Yeah. This is the Ruffy Devers that unfortunately we refuse to believe could be a possibility in San Francisco. We thought a change of scenery would do.

[00:12:02]I'm a big You know what? I blame myself.

[00:12:05]I swept it under the rug, too. I thought a change of scenery. He's been kind of a a guy that's been we thought bought into his role here in San Francisco.

[00:12:14]And it's proven that he's the same guy that he was in Boston, which is unfortunate. It's very important. But you know what? Even in Boston, at least he was hitting over there.

[00:12:24]At least he was contributing offensively over there. Here, we got the worst version of him as a hitter and as a teammate.

[00:12:31]That sucks. Is that a good, you know, return on investment if you're Buster Posey? No, it's not. And you know what?

[00:12:38]I don't really give a damn that it didn't work out with Kyle Harrison, Jordan Hicks, James Tibbs over in Boston cuz every Giants fan says, "Well, it didn't work for them, either." But you know what? They don't have to deal with this crap. Now, their team sucks this year, too, but at least they have a guy in Roman Anthony that they could believe in going forward. And I like to believe the Giants have a guy that they could believe in in Bryce Eldridge going forward.

[00:13:00]But I don't want Bryce to be working hand in hand with him. I don't want those to be the two best players on the team.

[00:13:05]>> The point on Boston The most important thing for them was to just get out from underneath that contract.

[00:13:09]>> Yes.

[00:13:10]Yes.

[00:13:10]>> I mean, that was their most important.

[00:13:13]And they don't have to deal with that >> that anymore. And you know what, Giants and Buster? You're probably going to have to eat a lot of this money if you want to move off of him. And you know what? I think you got to move off from this guy. Whether it's now or in the off season, you got to do it.

[00:13:25]But I don't see any other team wanting to get this guy. After yesterday, Joe, that's another angle in this. Who wants to trade for that?

[00:13:32]Seriously.

[00:13:33]Are the Yankees saying, "Oh, I need to go get him?"

[00:13:36]>> Well.

[00:13:36]>> Or the Braves thinking, "Hey, oh, the third time will be the charm. Oh, it didn't work in Boston or San Francisco, but it'll work here." I think that soured his trade value in a major, major way. And if you're Buster, that's probably your biggest takeaway. As we've heard multiple reports saying, "Hey, we're we're willing to move off of this guy. Come get him."

[00:13:57]Who the hell wants to trade for that?

[00:13:59]>> I don't know.

[00:14:00]>> Ugh.

[00:14:00]>> I don't know. I mean, we were, you know, filled with so much hubris. We thought it would be different here. And we were wrong.

[00:14:06]>> we did. We did. Because it was the other side of the country. Hey, bu- Hey, Giants fans, we're not Boston Red Sox fans. It's okay. Our media, we're not going to be their media. It's okay.

[00:14:18]A year later, how's that treating them?

[00:14:20]>> Not good.

[00:14:21]>> No.

[00:14:22]>> I mean, if they have to pay down a hundred million dollars, I think you have to do it.

[00:14:25]>> I almost want to talk to a Boston Red So- a Boston person today. Say, I- If they want to say I told you so, I totally get it now.

[00:14:32]>> I do get it.

[00:14:33]>> I get it. Hey, this was And you know what? This was Alex Cora. We actually have sound.

[00:14:37]>> duped.

[00:14:37]>> Oh, no, we are. We have been. And Buster Posey should feel the most duped right now. But you know what, Buster?

[00:14:42]This is part of being a president of baseball ops. This is part of getting all the glory of when the trade went down. And this is the downfall of it.

[00:14:50]Hey, you made that trade, dude.

[00:14:51]>> I know.

[00:14:52]>> And you have to eat it. You made the decision to move off of Bob Melvin and bring in Tony Vitello. You have got to own this.

[00:14:58]Alex Cora, we have sound from him last year. This was a year ago. Last year, Joe, Alex Cora, the then Boston Red Sox manager, asking if he was surprised that Devers was working out at first. Cuz remember, when Raffy Devers was traded from the Red Sox to the Giants, what was the conversation? He was He went from third base, and they brought in Alex Bregman, who's now a Cub, by the way. They brought in Alex Bregman to be third baseman and Raffy was ticked off about that. He was upset. He didn't want to do reps at first base over there. He refused to buy in. So, you know what? The Red Sox says, "We're moving on for you then. You don't want to buy into your role? We'll move on for you."

[00:15:39]Uh from you. And then Raffy Devers, what does he do in San Francisco? Oh, "I'll be your first baseman. Don't worry.

[00:15:46]I know I wasn't going to do it over the Red Sox, but I'll do it here for you."

[00:15:48]Almost seems petty, >> It was.

[00:15:50]>> It was petty. And this is Alex Cora, the then Boston Red Sox manager, reacting to it.

[00:15:55]>> Are you surprised that he's working out at first base?

[00:15:58]>> No.

[00:15:58]>> No. That was it. No.

[00:16:01]He was short and sweet.

[00:16:03]>> He knew exactly who that guy was.

[00:16:05]>> I'm not going to react at all. You know what?

[00:16:09]Happy for you, Raffy. So, congratulations. As we saw the tweet that he had yesterday, [snorts] Alex Cora, where it was the but {dot} {dot} {dot} but {dot} {dot} {dot} silence emoji.

[00:16:20]>> So, there's a guy I know who was a part of the front office for Boston who's no longer with them.

[00:16:26]>> Mhm.

[00:16:27]>> You can connect the dots. I'll let you do that. I ran into him on the street when they were in town. Let's just say that.

[00:16:33]>> Okay.

[00:16:34]>> And I was like, "Okay, I we were so hyped up over the Raffy deal."

[00:16:38]And he's like, "I'll just say this.

[00:16:40]He's a giant baby in every sense of the word."

[00:16:45]Well, I was like, "Okay. Well, it'll work out here." You know, I was delusional.

[00:16:49]>> Right. You would think >> Well, that's your organization, right?

[00:16:51]It's that's their problem.

[00:16:53]>> over there, it's not going to happen here.

[00:16:54]>> Nope.

[00:16:54]>> Almost the same way I I took the Jimmy Butler thing. Well, that happened there, it's not going to happen here.

[00:16:59]>> That's a good, yeah. It's a good comp.

[00:17:00]>> And everything that he said is playing out.

[00:17:03]He gave me a lot more information, but I mean, he was using that as the metaphor.

[00:17:07]He's just a giant baby, you know? And he refuses to put the team first at any turn.

[00:17:13]>> And you know what? In fairness, that was the first moment I've seen something from him being a giant baby in a giant's uniform.

[00:17:21]>> Right. It's funny.

[00:17:21]>> was the that was the red sock.

[00:17:23]>> No pun intended, giant baby.

[00:17:24]>> no, but I'm saying that was the first big glimpse of Oh, um now I see what Boston went through.

[00:17:30]>> Right.

[00:17:31]>> And it was bad, Joe. When Richard Aurilia is saying he hasn't seen that ever, ever, I don't think I have, either.

[00:17:39]>> with Bonds fighting guys in the dugout.

[00:17:41]>> Like Like and I know he mentioned the hotter thing. This was worse. This is like This was >> It played out crazy.

[00:17:47]>> openly defiant.

[00:17:49]>> I know.