Every time it feels like Tony Vitello and the San Francisco Giants are building some positive momentum, they go right back into a slump.

The Giants split a tough series with a good Milwaukee Brewers team to kick off the month of June before taking two out of three games from the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Then San Francisco returned home and started losing series again.

The Giants dropped two of three games to the Washington Nationals earlier this week before losing the first two games of a three-game series to the Cubs.

San Francisco is 28-43 on June 14 and they’re nine games back of the final Wild Card spot. It’s hard to imagine this team making the playoffs.

Vitello, who made the jump to the big leagues despite having no previous MLB experience, has faced a ton of criticism this season for his in-game decision making, his handling of young players, and his tendency to overshare with the media (I think some of the criticism is misguided, but it’s criticism nonetheless).

There’s already speculation that Vitello will take the Nick Saban path and return to college before the end of his contract with the Giants.

Quote from Brewers manager adds fuel to the fire about Tony Vitello back to college speculation

I’ve gone on record saying that I think Vitello will return to college baseball sooner rather than later.

And that’s not because I don’t believe in Vitello — I do. It’s just that I don’t think he’s the best fit for the big leagues.

I’m a big Tony V fan. I love what he’s about. He’s a people person — he cares more about the human element of the game than those pesky analytics. Vitello is passionate, he’s competitive, and he freaking loves baseball.

I just think he’s more well-suited for the college game. And that’s not an insult — most big league managers would fail miserably in college baseball.

It’s the same game, but there are still a lot of differences in the way it’s coached. Vitello’s fiery personality works better when it’s only needed on the weekends (and a mid-week game), as opposed to the even-keeled nature that’s required from managers over the course of a 162-game season (everyone sees the handful of viral Aaron Boone freakout videos with the Yankees each year, but those videos are like 9 innings worth of a season with over 1,458 innings).

Brewers manager Pat Murphy, who coached at Notre Dame and Arizona State before making the jump to MLB, dropped an interesting quote this week about the transition from college to MLB that is only adding fuel to the fire about Vitello’s future in the big leagues.

(Murphy, who played in the minor leagues for four seasons, worked in a front office role before managing in the minor leagues and then eventually landing in the big leagues…so a much different path than Vitello.)

Murphy admitted to the San Francisco Chronicle this week that he would’ve never been able to make the jump to a manager’s role straight from college.

“Knowing what I know now, there’s no way in hell I would have been ready for that,” said Murphy. “I think the difference is this guy’s sharper and I think he’s more balanced. I don’t know him that well, but he’s got a group of people around him ready to help him.”

“The speed of the game, the speed of decisions, the magnitude of small things. I tell everybody that the only analogy that makes sense to me is it’s harness racing compared to thoroughbred racing,” added Murphy. “That’s taking nothing away from the college game. It’s a great game, it’s better than ever.”

Murphy was being a bit self-deprecating, and he tried to sound optimistic about Vitello’s future in MLB, but his comments are telling.

What Vitello is trying to do has never been done. There’s no evidence anyone can point that says this will work. As Murphy said, it’s a different game. Every little decision matters more. It’s a lot to adjust to.

Murphy is one of the best in the game. If he says he could’ve never made this jump, why should anyone have confidence that a coach who didn’t even play in the minor leagues can make the jump?

Obviously none of us can predict the future. But if you had to bet on how this turns out, would you bet on the Giants winning a World Series under Vitello, or would you bet on Vitello returning to college where he’s a proven winner?

Again, I like Vitello a lot. I have a ton of respect for him, and I think he’s wildly misunderstood at times. I think he’s absolutely great for the game of baseball. But I also believe he’s at his best in the college game. I think it suits his lifestyle better (he’s a family guy, a relationships guy, and those are tough to build when you only have 10 days off a season), and I think it suits his leadership style better. That’s not a negative — not everyone is built for every job.

We’ll see where this thing lands — the looming MLB lockout could influence some future decisions — but I think we’ll see Vitello back in the SEC before too long.

The only question is whether he’ll be in Fayetteville, Columbia (Mizzou is already setting itself to bring Tony home), Knoxville, or maybe even Baton Rouge.