Sano's hard contact, coupled with his career-best 18.7 percent walk rate, has helped him hit .300/.431/.640 with eight homers, six doubles, two triples and a league-leading 28 RBIs in 29 games. It's been a major bounceback from last season, when he hit .236/.319/.462 with 25 homers and 66 RBIs in 116 games.
"It's just more patience and trying to hit the ball up the middle," Sano said. "I've just been trying to simplify the game."
Sano believed he was putting too much pressure on himself at the plate, which caused him to chase pitches out of the zone.