Giants Boss Tony Vitello Says He Never Tried Luring Max Scherzer as Free Agent

Shortly after the San Francisco Giants hired Tony Vitello as manager, the rumor mill cranked up because of his relationship with pitcher Max Scherzer.

Vitello was one of the pitching coaches at Missouri and helped guide Scherzer to being named Big 12 pitcher of the year before he was a first-round draft pick. While he was at the MLB general managers meetings in Las Vegas, he said he wasn’t opposed to a reunion with Scherzer, who was coming off starting Game 7 of the World Series with the Toronto Blue Jays.

There will be no reunion, aside from when the two franchises cross paths in interleague play. Scherzer signed a one-year, incentive-laden deal with the Blue Jays earlier this week. Turns out, Vitello really didn’t try to recruit Scherzer for San Francisco, as he related in an interview with Foul Territory from Giants spring training.

Tony Vitello on Max Scherzer

Tony Vitello says he and Max Scherzer “never crossed that line” when it came to recruiting Scherzer to the Giants. pic.twitter.com/j58LWIr17d
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) February 27, 2026

“We never really crossed that line,” Vitello said. “I don't know if it's mutual respect or probably more my relationship with him. I would always joke with everyone like they'd ask and I'm like ‘It's not like I'm inviting this guy to a Halloween party or a social event.’ It’s gotta be a match.”

Scherzer is a three-time Cy Young winner who is coming off a 2025 in which he started the year with an injury and returned to give the Blue Jays a fresh arm down the stretch and in the postseason. He waited to sign a deal, as he had a list of preferred teams and the Blue Jays were on it. He joins a pitching staff in Toronto that is already filled with starters like Dylan Cease, Kevin Gausman and José Berríos. That’s part of the reason the deal is incentive laden. It’s unclear where Scherzer fits.

Vitello said he didn’t want to speak out of turn, but he said geography likely had something to do with his decision.

“He's pretty East Coast flavored right now,” Vitello said. “Both sets of parents, or grandparents, are there. They’ve got four kids. It’s a great match for him. I’m so happy for him. The group chat smack talk has already started but it’s all very light-hearted.”

San Francisco did make moves in free agency to bolster the starting rotation, though they were not on the level of signing a Scherzer type of pitcher. Tyler Mahle signed a one-year deal to join the Giants, and he was recommended by his former boss in Texas, Giants special advisor Bruce Bochy. Adrian Houser, who turned his career around with the Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays last season, signed a two-year deal.