Ahead of a fresh series against the Philadelphia Phillies, Giants manager Tony Vitello addressed recent on-field mistakes with a message rooted in accountability and perspective.

Rather than dwelling on a single mistake, Vitello emphasized the focus on growth, and spoke a little about Matt Chapman, who was caught stealing in the ninth inning. 

“He’s a smart baseball player. He knows it’s a mistake now,” Vitello said. “It’s just very different when you’re on the field…things are happening, you’re wanting to do well.”

Vitello dismissed the idea that an apology was necessary, emphasizing that the game moves too quickly to linger on past errors. “There’s no sense in apologizing. It’s over with. It’s what you did,” he said. “If you’re gonna apologize for things, you shouldn’t do them on the field.”

Instead, the emphasis is on avoiding repetition.

“The biggest thing is just to not repeat those mistakes,” Vitello added. “It’d be criminal… for either he or anyone else to make the same mistakes.”

Vitello also pushed back on the idea that the mistake came from confusion or miscommunication.

“There was no missed sign… he just was trying,” Vitello said, acknowledging that overexertion in competitive moments can sometimes backfire. “When you’re trying to win games as hard as possible, sometimes it actually contradicts what your end goal is.”

Vitello pointed to a pattern within his club, noting that emotional or intense moments have often sparked better play. “We’ve played our best three games following,” he said. “Our guys have kind of let loose a little bit… said what they think… as opposed to being a little too careful.”

That openness ties directly into leadership.

“He’s a leader on our team,” Vitello said. “If somebody needs to speak up, it needs to be… those guys first.” Still, he welcomed accountability across the roster, adding, “We’d rather guys speak out too much than not enough.”

When discussing momentum, Vitello acknowledged its presence but questioned its reliability. “You can’t touch it, you can’t feel it… you can’t really coach it,” he said. “If you’re relying on momentum…you might be spinning your wheels.”

Ultimately, his message remains grounded in fundamentals. “The biggest thing is to go out and play ball the way that you’re supposed to,” Vitello said. “Fundamentally sound… and unapologetically.”

With a new series set to begin, Vitello believes any shift can happen quickly. “Momentum changes immediately,” he said. “It’s a new series… a matter of doing a couple things right.”

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