Perhaps just as importantly in baseball as the big free agent signings are the value singings.  These are the players that the GM expects to make a difference on the team but at a great price. Some times these players can be some of the most instrumental players, as they could be great players who just have not had a chance to start yet.  

1. One such player is Tyler Flowers who signed a three year deal with the Braves worth up to 13.5 million.  Flowers isn’t going to hit for much of an average, but he does have some pop, and should get a decent amount of playing time considering that their primary catcher is 39 years old.  Even though the Braves won’t be going anywhere this season Flowers is a nice addition to the team at a low price.  

2. Another value signing was the signing of J.A. Happ.  Happ posted some incredible numbers with the Pirates last season after being traded by the Mariners.  While his numbers from Pittsburgh are unsustainable if he is at least half as good as he was in Pittsburgh he is worth the signing.  Happ’s contract is very team friendly at 12 million, especially when you consider the going rate for starting pitchers these days.  

3. Rex Brothers may be my favorite value signing of the offseason.  Brothers spent his first five seasons in Colorado where he had a 3.42 ERA, but he had an ERA under 2.0 in two of those seasons which is incredible.  Now Brothers gets to play for a superior defensive team in a much better ballpark.  At only 1.42 million you can’t beat the price for the type of production the Cubs will likely get out of him now that he is away from Coors Field.  

4. After a bad season last year during which he lost his job as the closer, Steve Cishek rebounded in a big way with the Cardinals.  Cishek finished the second half of the year with a 2.31 ERA after posting a 4.50 ERA during the first half.  Cishek owns a career 2.82 ERA, and will likely be the closer for the Mariners this season at a bargain price of five million per year.   Cishek racked up 95 saves as the Marlins closer over a three year span and should play a large role in turning around the Mariners as they got little production out of their bullpen last year.

5. Another signing that I like is the Red Sox going out and getting Chris Young.  The outfield is a bit crowded right now in Boston but Young is almost guaranteed at bats against all left handed starters after having great numbers off lefties last season for the Yankees.  Young is only making 13 millions over the next years, and if he can duplicate last seasons numbers off lefties he won’t even have to play against right handed pitching to make this a good signing.