Vol Club Confidential: Tony Vitello
Tennessee baseball manager Tony Vitello grew up just outside of St. Louis, Missouri and that town and state helped mold who he is on and off the field.
Since taking over on Rocky Top, Vitello has led the Big Orange back to national prominence and has helped establish Tennessee baseball as an SEC and national power, leading the program to three NCAA regionals (2019, 2021, 2022), back-to-back NCAA super regionals (2021 & 2022) and a College World Series (2021), its first since 2005. Last season, Tennessee was the most dominant team in college baseball but stumbled in the super regionals against Notre Dame.
A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Vitello arrived at Tennessee following four seasons as assistant coach/recruiting coordinator at Arkansas. His rise to the head coaching ranks also included stops at Missouri (his alma mater) and TCU. He has earned a reputation as one of the elite recruiters on the college baseball landscape, having assembled 11 top-15 signing classes–including America’s top-rated crop of talent in 2014.
That reputation has continued to grow as he has stockpiled talent on Rocky Top. He has also piled up the wins in Knoxville.
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Tennessee cemented its reemergence as an SEC and national power in 2022, setting a new program record with 57 victories en route to winning SEC Regular Season and SEC Tournament titles. With Vitello in charge, the Vols have increased their win total during every full season since his arrival (29 – 2018, 40 – 2019, 50 – 2021, 57 – 2022).
As we head into a new season, Vitello has a new group of Vols to lead with some key components coming back. Returning are his three top pitchers from last season. Gone are some big and important bats that Tennessee will have to find to replace in terms of production.
And as Tennessee gets ready for the first pitch of 2023, Vitello joined Vol Club Confidential to discuss his time here, what makes him tick, who he has molded his managing style after and so much more.
