Veteran reporters John Shea and Henry Schulman wrote an excellent piece for the San Francisco Chronicle on Thursday, detailing the toll the brutal 2017 Giants’ season has taken on manager Bruce Bochy, and what the future holds for the sure-fire Hall of Famer. But perhaps the most interesting tidbit of the wide-ranging story comes via quotes from two anonymous Giants players, who don’t exactly offer ringing endorsements for the skipper, saying they’ve noticed a negative change in his demeanor since early last season.
Via The San Francisco Chronicle:
Players consistently have praised Bochy’s managerial style over the years. But in seeking comments from several for this story, The Chronicle discovered a reluctance by some to offer a full-throated endorsement of the manager’s interactions with players.
Two Giants players, who asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the topic, offered specifics, saying Bochy has turned more negative over the past two seasons, particularly in the dugout.
“It seems like nothing we do is good enough,” one player said.
The other player, confirming his teammate’s assessment, said, “There’s just been a different vibe.”
While surprised, Bochy responded to the comments with his usual diplomacy, saying he understands players being frustrated in 2017.
“It’s been a tough season,” he told the Chronicle, “not just a tough season, but last year, a tough second half, which means tension runs higher. Patience wears thinner. Is there more tension? You know what? I hope so. I hope it’s healthy tension, that is. I want there to be a sense of urgency to turn this around. I want us to be feeling it because this is not what we want, not what our fans want, not what our investors bargained for.
“With that said, we work very hard to create a culture of candor here. I would hope that our players would feel comfortable talking to me directly. My door is always open. I care about how these guys are doing. I want them to play for something bigger. I want them to care about each other and how our fans are doing.”
Both Bochy and the front office plan on the manager’s return next season, with Bochy saying that he does not want to end his career on the lowest of low notes. General manager Bobby Evans offered a full-throated endorsement of Bochy as the best man for the job moving forward
“Of course, we’re looking forward to having Boch back next year,” Evans told the Chronicle. “It’s a team effort here, a team effort to get things right. He leads the staff, leads the clubhouse. We’ve got to do everything we can to get back where we should be, and we need to get better in lot of areas.
“We feel fortunate to have the stabilizing presence of Bruce Bochy running our clubhouse and running the game. That gives us a lot of confidence before we get to the rest of it. That’s a big factor for us.”
