What are the Royals focusing on this offseason?

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The Hot Stove season has started, and every general manager talked about the state of their team and offseason plans in between meeting with other teams to lay foundations for talks down the road.

Here are four things Royals GM J.J. Picollo discussed at the GM Meetings:

1. Priority remains on starting pitching
_The skinny_: All 30 teams are looking for pitching, and there is a ton of free agent pitching available -- at a price. The Royals won’t be in the upper tier of spending, and they’ll have to get creative, perhaps finding a bounce-back candidate or swinging a trade that lands them a starter.

_The quote_: “We’ve got to get depth with our pitching,” Picollo said. “One of our goals is to get starting pitching. And then we’ve got to remake our bullpen. We didn’t throw enough strikes in the bullpen. It’s going to be very difficult for us to acquire a guy that’s an established closer, so we’re probably looking at closer by committee and matchups. Who knows where the market will go, but the priority is going to be on the starting pitching, and then piece the bullpen together. …

“I feel like we’re on a good track when we talk to free agents and when we acquire a pitcher, we have some evidence now that we can help them and further their development. I’m excited about that. But it’s going to be competitive. I think opportunity, being able to step into a rotation, helps. Adding guys that have had a certain level of success, who bring a presence to a team and to the clubhouse is important as well.”

2. Third hitting coach
_The skinny_: The Royals want to add a third voice to their hitting department to complement hitting coach Alec Zumwalt and assistant hitting coach Keoni DeRenne. After special assignment hitting coach Mike Tosar left for the White Sox a year ago, the Royals still felt good about their game planning but thought they lacked someone with a deeper knowledge of swing mechanics. A third coach would balance out the skills of the department.

_The quote_: “A veteran coach would be nice, but it’s not a priority,” Picollo admitted. “I think Alec and Keoni do a great job with training and game planning. We’d like to find somebody that can complement those two. Probably somebody that’s a little more geared toward the mechanics of the swing. … I’ll give Alec a lot of credit, he acknowledged at the end of the year that we missed having somebody like Mike Tosar around. So I think the mechanical part with some experience would be great.”

3. What kind of bat they want
_The skinny_: The Royals also want to add a bat or two in order to add power and depth to their lineup. A hitter known for getting on base would fit in the plans, given their .303 on-base percentage was third-worst in the Majors this year.

_The quote_: “Our on-base wasn’t as high as we’d like it to be,” Picollo said. “I think that’ll tick up as our guys get older and more experienced. But somebody who can get on base would be a priority. Power in our park has always been difficult to come by, but somebody who has more slug would be good. Somebody who can just give you a professional at-bat, get on base, drive the ball, hit anywhere from three to six or seven, and I think just to stretch our lineup would be a great fit.”

4. A potential Zack Greinke return
_The skinny_: Greinke is a free agent again after his 20th season in the Majors and last two with the Royals. He didn’t hint at retirement at the end of the season, so might he return to Kansas City?

_The quote_: “He’s deciding whether or not he’s going to come back,” Picollo shared. “I know he’s started his training. We had some communication [on Monday]. There were times this year where he threw the ball really well, and he’s also like 30 strikeouts away from 3,000. That’s got to be a motivating factor. I would be surprised if Zack decided it was time to step away. But I also think he wants to see how his body feels as he goes through the offseason.

"The passion for the game, the love for competition is there, and he’s one of the first guys at the field every day. He loves being around the field. So we’ll see where it goes with us, but most of it’s going to be dictated by him and whether he decides to come back.”

MLB.com Cardinals beat writer John Denton contributed to this reporting.