San Francisco Giants manager Tony Vitello was in a good mood after his team's come-from-behind win Thursday, which was made possible by the late-game heroics of Rafael Devers, who hit a game-tying homer in the ninth inning.
"I'd be remiss if I didn't say the best coaching moment of the night was we told Rafi if he got on first, we were going to pinch-run for him."
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) June 25, 2026
Tony Vitello inspired Devers' ninth-inning homer 😂 pic.twitter.com/RXsz6tRsfC
Vitello's joke about his star player came after Devers tried to send a pinch-runner back to the dugout during Sunday's loss to the Miami Marlins.
Devers later admitted he wasn't trying to disrespect his manager, telling reporters that he apologized to Vitello for coming off as such.
Devers is in the midst of his worst season since 2018 for the underperforming Giants, who are 13 games below .500.
San Francisco is reportedly shopping the slugger and other key players ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
