Mike Krukow explains why SF Giants hiring Tony Vitello initially raised his eyebrow

The SF Giants have been quiet when it comes to acquiring players this offseason, and if they do not make any other additions their two biggest moves will have been hiring Tony Vitello as manager and acquiring an old theater.

Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow appeared on the Splash Hit Territory podcast and explained why, initially, he raised his eyebrow at the unconventional Vitello hire which certainly went against the grain for president of baseball operations Buster Posey.

Mike Krukow was initially skeptical of SF Giants hiring Tony Vitello

Krukow explained his reasoning for the initial skepticism, saying he thought, "That's a big ask to have a guy with no experience come into a major league clubhouse and impact them in a positive way."

Krukow was not alone in that skepticism. Former big league manager Joe Maddon called the hiring "insulting" and there have to be plenty of other old school baseball types who think Vitello is bound to fail.

Yet, Krukow went on to say that after talking with Vitello he has a much better sense of who he is and where he is coming from. He commended his confidence, his intelligence, and his humility in taking on this new job and said he understands why Posey was impressed by the guy.

Vitello is going to have a lot of eyes on him coming straight from the collegiate ranks. However, there were a number of unconventional hires this cycle, some in the same division like with the San Diego Padres hiring Craig Stammen so that may take a little heat off Vitello.

The biggest issue for Vitello may be the fact that the Giants have yet to improve the roster in a meaningful way. The moves thry have made have mostly been minor ones and they seem to be done with rotation additions which, with all respect to both Adrian Houser and Tyler Mahle who are both respectable big league pitchers, is not going to leave many fans satisfied.

Maybe Posey's bet that this coaching staff will help the team improve internally will pay off. It certainly is a risk to think someone with no big league experience like Vitello could do that, but maybe the Giants need a dose of the unconventional to finally get out of their rut of mediocrity.

Krukow's initial skepticism seems to have gone away so maybe Vitello can win over skeptical Giants fans as well.