SF Giants infielder Willy Adames dubs hilarious nickname for first-time manager

Willy Adames and new SF Giants manager Tony Vitello have quickly formed a bond this offseason. On Saturday, Vitello told Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that Adames keeps referring to the first-time manager as "rookie."

SF Giants infielder Willy Adames dubs hilarious nickname for first-time manager

The Giants made a stop over to San Ramon for FanFest over the weekend. It was the second stop in a four-city tour to get Giants fans ready for the season.

Vitello was in attendance, along with Logan Webb, Jung Hoo Lee, Hayden Birdsong, Landen Roupp, and Erik Miller. Vitell also attended the first stop in San Jose last weekend.

Vitello and Adames have spent a good bit of time together this offseason. They traveled to South Korea in the first week of January to meet up with Lee. Buster Posey was also in attendance for this trip.

The new Giants manager met up with quite a few core Giants players this offseason. In addition to his trip to South Korea, he traveled to the Dominican Republic to connect with Adames and Rafael Devers.

This is not too dissimilar to what Steve Kerr did when he took over as head coach of the Golden State Warriors over a decade ago. He traveled to meet with his team. This included a trip to Australia to meet Andrew Bogut.

So, Vitello is making an extra effort to get to know his players. It is an encouraging sign that Adames and him have already formed a bond, given that the Giants shortstop feels comfortable enough to refer to him as "rookie." In a lot of ways, Adames has become one of the faces of the organization, so Vitello will need his support.

Vitello might be new to managing, but he is not new to coaching. He served as an assistant coach for the University of Missouri, Texas Christian University, and the University of Arkansas. For the past eight seasons, he oversaw a University of Tennessee baseball program that became a powerhouse in college baseball.

The 47-year-old manager does not have any experience coaching at the pro ranks, but he has put together an experienced coaching staff to help him get through his first year as manager. Former managers Jayce Tingler and Ron Washington are expected to fill prominent roles on the coaching staff.