The Giants may be focused on building toward the future, but their core of veterans still feel like they have plenty to offer in the interim.

Recent history begs to differ, as Buster Posey, Brandon Belt and Brandon Crawford have experienced declines from their offensive peaks, raising questions about what the Giants can realistically expect of them moving forward. Posey understands there will be a healthy amount of skepticism regarding their 2020 outlook, but he remains confident in the trio’s ability to rebound from their subpar campaigns last year and exceed the low expectations that have been set for them.

“I think the fan base has a right to be skeptical about it,” Posey said. “I can’t speak for those other guys. I do feel like I have more left in the tank to be more productive, and I’m sure those guys feel the same way.”

Posey acknowledged that change will require adjustments, and to that end, the Giants have assembled a new player-development-focused coaching staff that will aim to help veterans and youngsters alike achieve gains in the Majors this year. Without a marquee free-agent addition this offseason, the Giants will require growth from up and down their roster if they’re to improve on their 77-85 finish in 2019.

“You'll hear me talk about the development of some of our younger players, but you guys are also going to hear me talk about the development of our veteran players,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “I think one thing to be excited about is if we can get a small uptick from our group of veteran players -- one of the better years they've had in the last couple years -- and we get some really consistent development from our young players ... the result will be positive.”

A triumvirate of new hitting coaches -- Donnie Ecker, Justin Viele and Dustin Lind -- will be charged with squeezing more production out of a lineup that ranked 28th in the Majors with a .694 OPS last year, though they will first have to earn the trust of the club’s veterans, many of whom previously worked with the same instructors for the bulk of their accomplished careers. While the group is short on Major League coaching experience, they are well versed in analytics and the biomechanical component of swings.

“This whole next couple weeks is really going to be building relationships with players and creating a game plan that's really solid for them to move forward and be able to train in-season to make those adjustments,” Lind said. “It's an open conversation between us and the player. It goes two ways. We can take suggestions on what the player wants to do, and we offer suggestions on how we think the players can get there. That conversation is going to be ongoing throughout the season.”

Giants players have characterized their interactions with the new coaches as positive thus far. Crawford, who lives in Arizona during the offseason, said he began working with the hitting group a few weeks ago and was impressed with the thoroughness of their preparation.

“You can tell how much homework they did on my swing,” Crawford said. “They said they went back all the way to my rookie year, like looking at all my swings and trying to pick out stuff that will help, or what worked back then that maybe I’m doing different now. Just having that fresh set of eyes will help.”

Improved health should help, too. Posey said his surgically repaired hip feels “night and day” from where it was a year ago, while Crawford and Belt are looking to move past the nagging knee injuries that have hampered them in recent years.

“I think the past couple of years, there have been some injuries that have crept in and kept us from playing at our full potential,” Belt said. “Having a full offseason now to be able to rehab and get better and strengthen our whole bodies, I think you’re going to see a different side, or an older side to the veterans. And by older, I mean how we played a few years ago.

“Personally, I still feel like I have a lot left in the tank. I feel like I still have some untapped potential. I’m looking to go out there and kind of repeat what I did in 2016 or the first half of 2018 before I got hurt. I think that’s definitely possible. In my mind, I’ve still got a lot left in there, and I’m looking to be able to bring that out this year and do it for the entire year.”