Hunter Pence’s return, Brandon Belt’s surge and 5 other catalysts in the San Francisco Giants’ recent turnaround

May 17, 2015; Cincinnati, OH, USA; San Francisco Giants left fielder Nori Aoki (23) hits a two-run single against the Cincinnati Reds in the second inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports

Better overall approach at the plate

And the statistics, both traditional and advanced, show it. Over the last couple weeks, the Giants as a team are amongst the MLB leaders in average (.303), OPS (.805) and wOBA (.354).

Part of that is due to an abnormally high BABIP (.356), but another piece of the equation is plate discipline. San Francisco’s hitters are doing a good job laying off pitches outside the zone, saving their swings for offerings over the plate (tops in the league at 71 percent).

Giants hitters “pressing” in response to low run totals appears to be a thing of the past.