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Are Giants fans losing confidence in Bruce Bochy?

The latest FanPulse survey reveals an alarming trend.

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San Francisco Giants v Pittsburgh Pirates Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images

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Last week, McCovey Chronicles featured one of the biggest bumps in FanPulse voter sign-ups throughout SB Nation. With every increase in sampling, these weekly diversions into the minds of you, the true fan, come closer to having some bearing on how we and the fan base at large talks about the Giants.

On that note...

Fans are getting tired of Bruce Bochy. His “approval rating” dropped 18% to a season-low 65%.

Confidence in the team’s direction continued its plummet, too, from 47% last week to just 30% this week.

Compared to the rest of the network, Giants fans are only second in the “least confident fandom” ranking. Only 17% of Pirates FanPulse voters showed confidence in their team’s direction. 37% of Nationals fans expressed similar sentiments.

Meanwhile, Bruce Bochy’s new approval rating puts him on par with Reds fans and their approval of first-year manager David Bell (also 65%) and just slightly ahead of the PadresAndy Green (62%). Aaron Boone has a 69% approval rating from Yankees FanPulse voters.

It’s understandable that team performance would be tied to manager approval, but it’s still a bit jarring to see how Bruce Bochy gets no leeway when it comes to the roster he’s been given. Granted, these FanPulse voters could be savvy and might be dinging him for his stubbornness when it comes to things like letting a pitcher see the opposing lineup for the third time in a game or... well... that seems to be the only fly in the ointment at this point. He can’t make Brandon Crawford and Evan Longoria hit better and the Giants don’t really have options to replace either of them.

Also, he’s not going anywhere. He’s retiring at season’s end and the Giants are committed to letting him play out his contract. They’re really committed to letting this be the final season and victory lap for that championship core. That’s probably going to lead to a lot of bad baseball, of course, and more old school managerial decisions that not only conflict with the modern game but perhaps hurt the team’s chances for success — but he’s earned that, given everything he’s done for the franchise.

And given everything he’s done for us! Can’t you be grateful? He’s only got five more months!

Maybe a series win against the Dodgers will brighten the voters spirits for next week. If you have any suggestions for questions to ask Giants voters, mention them in the comments below. Otherwise, why do you think Bruce Bochy’s approval rating has taken such a hit?