On Thursday, former Tennessee baseball head coach Tony Vitello’s San Francisco Giants squared off with the Cincinnati Reds. On the mound for the Reds was Chase Burns, a former star Vols pitcher, who transferred to Wake Forest to end his career.
The meeting between Vitello and Burns isn’t what took headlines, though. Instead, in the midst of the Giants’ 3-0 win, Vitello let an umpire hear it after Patrick Bailey grounded into a double play.
A manager getting on an umpire is far from unsual in the MLB. However, this one had a bit of extra flair. The umpire was Junior Valentine, a native of East Tennessee. He was born in Cosby, Tennessee, and attended Maryville College. There is no known tie between him and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, though.
Tony Vitello seemingly had words for one of the umpires after Patrick Bailey grounded into a double play pic.twitter.com/AJrmSTJ1lo
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While the Giants won, it was hardly Burns’ fault. In his start, the former Vol and Demon Deacon pitched six innings while allowing just two hits, no runs, a walk and striking out four batters. He threw 87 pitches in the game. However, the bullpen couldn’t keep the clean slate.
Instead, RBI from Matt Chapman, Jung Hoo Lee and Casey Schmitt lifted San Francisco to a win. Also in the order for the Giants was former Tennessee star outfielder Drew Gilbert. He batted eighth and played in center. He finished 0-for-2 at the plate with a walk and a strikeout.
The Giants are now 7-12 to get the Vitello Era started in San Francisco. This places them in a tie with the Colorado Rockies for last in the NL West, though there is still plenty of season left to be played. Next, they will play the Washington Nationals for a three-game set on the road.
