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There was always going to be a learning curve when Tony Vitello left the college ranks to take over as Giants manager. But it's difficult to imagine his first few months in a big-league clubhouse going any worse.
And on Sunday, we saw the lack of control Vitello has within the team.
With the Giants trailing the Marlins by a run in the ninth, Rafael Devers led off the inning with a walk. Now, Devers is a lot of things, but fast is certainly not one of them. So, Vitello looked to his bench and sent Jonah Cox out to pinch run for Devers.
Instead of simply making his way to the dugout, Devers decided to actively show up his manager.
Devers tried to wave off Cox to refuse the pinch runner, which led to some confusion at first base. Devers ranks in the 22nd percentile in sprint speed, so there really shouldn't have been a debate. Yet, there he was, standing at first and trying to refuse a substitution.
But Devers' efforts weren't successful. Vitello made the change, and Devers had to leave the field. And when he made his way into the dugout, Devers wouldn't let any teammate or coach touch him — he refused every high-five.
The Giants would end up losing anyway and dropped to 18 games back in the NL West.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Rafael Devers tried to refuse a pinch runner as Giants manager Tony Vitello struggles
Continue reading...
And on Sunday, we saw the lack of control Vitello has within the team.
With the Giants trailing the Marlins by a run in the ninth, Rafael Devers led off the inning with a walk. Now, Devers is a lot of things, but fast is certainly not one of them. So, Vitello looked to his bench and sent Jonah Cox out to pinch run for Devers.
Instead of simply making his way to the dugout, Devers decided to actively show up his manager.
Devers tried to wave off Cox to refuse the pinch runner, which led to some confusion at first base. Devers ranks in the 22nd percentile in sprint speed, so there really shouldn't have been a debate. Yet, there he was, standing at first and trying to refuse a substitution.
But Devers' efforts weren't successful. Vitello made the change, and Devers had to leave the field. And when he made his way into the dugout, Devers wouldn't let any teammate or coach touch him — he refused every high-five.
The Giants would end up losing anyway and dropped to 18 games back in the NL West.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Rafael Devers tried to refuse a pinch runner as Giants manager Tony Vitello struggles
Continue reading...
