The Detroit Tigers have avoided arbitration by signing three of their key players to one-year deals for the upcoming MLB season.
Rick Porcello, who will move into the fourth starter position this season, will make $8.5 million in the upcoming campaign. The 25-year old veteran has already played five seasons in Detroit and figures to benefit from the new-and-improved Tigers 
infield in 2014. The additions of Ian Kinsler and Jose Iglesias will give the ground ball specialist a duo to count on and should help him improve on a career 4.51 ERA.
2014 will be a crucial season for the right-hander after General Manager Dave Dombrowski committed to him by trading reliable pitcher Doug Fister to the Washington Nationals. What was a crowded Tigers rotation at this time last year is now set with Porcello firmly included.
Austin Jackson also got a new deal and will make $6 million in 2014. Jackson's reliable defense have made him an invaluable commodity for Detroit after the trade that brought him from New York.
Jackson's offensive role is less clear heading into the 2014 season. After struggling to get on base out of the lead-off spot early in the postseason, Jackson was moved to the No. 7 spot, where he was six for nine (.667) with zero strikeouts in three games. That performance, coupled with the addition of the talented lead-off hitter Kinsler, could move the center fielder to another spot in the lineup.
Read: 5 reasons Ian Kinsler-Prince Fielder trade makes Detroit Tigers better
Finally, after making less than $1 million last season, Andy Dirks will receive a boosted $1.625 million in 2014.
Dirks set career-highs with 438 at-bats and 131 games as the Tigers' left fielder in 2013 and will likely split time with newly-acquired Rajai Davis this season. Dirks was quietly named a finalist for the Gold Glove Award in 2013, and has earned a raise through three seasons in Detroit, hitting .276 with 24 home runs and 100 RBI.
Though these moves won't make as much of a splash as Dombrowski's earlier signings, the Tigers needed to avoid arbitration and secure these important players.