By Jeremy Harness

Things are starting to get better for the Giants. Much better.

The Giants took the second of a three-game series from the Milwaukee Brewers Wednesday night in an offensive explosion that they are not used to experiencing. The team has had a very successful road trip that has them within striking distance of the division-leading Dodgers, something that was in serious doubt as recent as two weeks ago.

Their fortunes may be about to turn around even more.

That’s because center fielder Angel Pagan is set to make his return to the lineup for Thursday’s game. Pagan is considered the catalyst of this offense, and he was sorely missed, particularly for the better part of the past two months that saw the Giants fall dramatically from their perch atop the National League West.

Pagan had been out with a nagging back injury, a year after he missed most of the second half of the 2013 season with a hamstring ailment.

Hunter Pence, who went 2-for-6 Wednesday, has done an admirable job filling in at the stop of the lineup after the experiment with Gregor Blanco didn’t exactly work out. Pagan is expected to make a significant impact, barring any further setbacks.

As for the rest of the team, starter Ryan Vogelsong got plenty of run support in Wednesday’s 7-3 win over the Brewers, something that he hasn’t been accustomed to lately. Pablo Sandoval and Michael Morse each drove in three runs, with Sandoval nailing a crucial two-run homer in the top of the eighth inning to give Giants enough cushion to cruise the rest of the way to victory.

Vogelsong wasn’t too bad himself. He went six strong innings and gave up only a run on seven hits, walking one and striking out three in lowering his ERA to 3.77.

Juan Gutierrez, however, gave up a pair of runs in the seventh inning without retiring a single batter and allowed the Brewers to climb back into the game. Thankfully, the other relievers were able to pick up the slack, as Jeremy Affeldt, Sergio Romo and closer Santiago Casilla each pitched scoreless innings in closing out Milwaukee.