A bench-clearing brawl might have stolen the headlines, but the real drama during Thursday’s Giants-Reds matchup was a cold war years in the making between a rookie phenom and his former college coach.

But the eagle-eyed fans didn’t miss one subtle event in the middle. The duel between the Reds’ rookie starter, Chase Burns, and the Giants manager, Tony Vitello. No, they haven’t been involved in any altercations, but after the game, Burns hinted at his disputed college baseball past involving Vitello.

“No, I don’t talk to him,” said Burns when asked if he spoke to Vitello this series. “I have some guys over there, though. Q, the strength coach, I chatted it up with him. That’s about it.”

The history between Burns and Vitello goes back to their time in college baseball. Reportedly, Burns spent the first two seasons of his college baseball career with the Tennessee Vols before jumping ship to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. He was with the Vols between 2022 and 2023, and that time, Vitello was the Vols’ coach.

So, the Giants-Reds series was a reunion between Burns and Vitello, but it was far from a warm welcome.

While Burns didn’t reveal the reason for ignoring Vitello, despite having a conversation with others, he made sure fans know there’s an issue between the two.

Burns dominated for the Vols in 2022. He finished the season with an 8-2 record and 2.91 ERA with 103 SOs. However, he was still scratched from their starting rotation and shifted to the bullpen. Burns still pitched incredibly well as a reliever. For instance, he threw 6 scoreless innings in the 2023 College World Series against Stanford.

But Burns always saw himself as a starter, and he moved to the Deacons for a starter role. Since Vitello was the head coach who made the call to move him to the bullpen, it’s safe to say the bad blood started there. No interaction between the two on Thursday just proved that the relationship hasn’t improved.

Burns’ decision to stick with a starter role proved successful. With the Deacons in 2024, he recorded 191 SOs, with a 2.70 ERA. That landed him an MLB offer when the Reds picked Chase Burns as their No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. On Thursday, despite the Reds’ loss, Burns allowed no ER but secured 4 SOs.

But apart from Burns’ heroics, Thursday’s game had enough to keep the fans on their edge.

The Giants-Reds Series offered enough fireworks

The lingering college tension between Burns and Vitello didn’t just stay in the post-game locker room; it briefly spilled over onto the field in the third inning.

It started when the Giants’ dugout began yelling at Burns for a possible balk. They claimed that he balked on a pickoff attempt against Drew Gilbert at first base. Following an inning-ending double play on the very next pitch, Vitello marched out of the dugout. He was then seen having a visibly heated argument with the umpires over his former pitcher’s move.

This, coupled with Burns’ comment, was a clear sign that the bad blood from their college is still going strong.

However, the bigger scene happened after the game when benches from both dugouts got cleared following a verbal between the Reds’ Sal Stewart and the Giants’ Erik Miller. Reportedly, in the ninth, Miller ended the Reds’ inning by striking out Stewart. And it appears that the Giants’ pitcher yelled a few words at Stewart, which caused the latter to charge at the pitcher.

Result? Both dugouts and bullpens emptied, but fortunately, there weren’t any punches thrown.

However, at the end of the series, the position of the Giants and Reds is a stark contrast. The Reds are currently leading the NL Central with an 11-8 record, while the Giants are the basement dweller in the NL West with a 7-12 record. Burns won the first face-off against Vitello. Let’s see how Vitello counters once they face off again this year.