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Tony Vitello has hilarious reaction to Tennessee home run during in-game interview

On3 imageby:Sam Gillenwater•06/02/24•

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Tennessee baseball coach Tony Vitello watching on from the home dugout. Credit: Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
Saul Young | News Sentinel | USA TODAY NETWORK

Tennessee couldn’t even wait for Tony Vitello to finish his interview before going long again and getting a reaction both out of Lindsey Nelson Stadium as well as their head coach.

Vitello was listening to the second question while speaking with the SEC Network during the fifth inning of a matchup in the Knoxville Regional between the Volunteers and Southern Miss. Before he could hear it, Cal Stark hit a homer to retake the lead and excite those on Rocky Top.

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“It’s fun when that happens!” shouted Vitello about the environment as he raised his arms in celebration.

With that happening, the announcers believes that Vitello was some form of good luck on offense. However, he quickly denied that considering how his career with a bat went.

“I’m not. You didn’t see me hit, dude,” Vitello joked. “When I grew up watching you pitch, I was in the cage thinking, ‘I’ve got to hit a guy like that one day’. Trust me – it wasn’t even close.”

Vitello turned his attention back to Stark, the senior catcher, at that point. He credited him for his work in both aspects of the game and praised his impact for the Volunteers.

“He does, man. This is not the time but I’m dying for this kid to get a chance to throw the ball,” Vitello said. “It’s weird. He’s unique. He’s a special kid. I mean he can play defense but his rapport with the pitcher and the umpire is something special. He can handle a bat just fine. You know how difficult it is to be an offensive catcher.”

“He’s special for us,” said Vitello.

Vitello also returned back to the original question from during Stark’s home run about the environment at their ballpark. He said that they’ve come a long way in creating that space, which still isn’t capable of holding all of those from their fanbase who wish to support them.

“Well, the first thing we’re doing is trying to catch up,” said Vitello. “The thing is we’ve got ingredients that other people aren’t fortunate enough to have.”

“Our fans are absolutely crazy and incredibly loyal. So we run into a situation where, even though we’ve expanded the park, we don’t have enough tickets – not even close,” said Vitello.

Tennessee got a fantastic reaction from their leader because of that play. They could earn an even better one from him, though, if they eliminate the Eagles in the final from their regional tonight.