By Jason Follain Raise your hand if, before the season started, you thought Andres Torres would be among the top 10 most valuable position players, according to FanGraphs? WAR statistic, in all of baseball in 2010. Didn?t think so. On second thought, raise your hand if you thought Andres Torres would even be on a major league roster come August. Didn?t think so, either. Now that we are in the home stretch of the baseball season, we are getting to a point where teams that we thought were pretenders are for real (that means you, Padres). Furthermore, players we thought were bound to cool off have not done so and are establishing themselves as legitimate threats. With the business side of baseball being so public in this day and age, how much money a player makes compared to the return on investment they provide with their production on the field is the primary factor in determining a player?s value to an organization. While pre-arbitration players (major leaguers with less than three years service time) have the chance to provide exponential value to their ball clubs because they make close to the major league minimum, these aren?t the only players supplying their teams with a high level of offensive production per dollar spent. Without further ado, here are your bang for your buck All-Stars and their respective PARAS factor (Percentage of Alex Rodriguez?s Annual Salary): Andres Torres ? The poster boy for this discussion, Torres has been an absolute monster for the Giants after finally breaking through at the unheard of age of 32. His unexpected production at the top of the lineup is one of the primary reasons a San Francisco team, previously starved for such a sparkplug, has the lead in the wild card race and nipping at the heels of the first place Padres in the National League West. Andres ?The Giant? has given his ballclub everything that a team looks for in a leadoff hitter, including getting on base (.371 OBP), being a threat on the basepaths (21 stolen bases), as well as being patient (10.9% walk rate). Torres is also providing one thing that you don?t normally ask for from someone leading off: power. He has punished opposing pitchers to the tune of a .503 slugging percentage and is currently tied for the major league lead in doubles. Torres has also arguably been the best fielding outfielder in the National League this season while logging time at all three positions. San Francisco has benefited from his high level of production in exchange for the major league equivalent of pocket change, as Torres will make a grand total of $426,000. PARAS factor: 1.3% Joey Votto ? The antithesis of Torres, Joey Votto was drafted in the second round of the 2002 amateur draft and earned the top prospect label while rising through the Cincinnati Reds farm system. Since arriving in the big leagues, Votto has done nothing but be a menace to National League pitching staffs. Since a September call-up in 2007, he has proven himself to be a legitimate middle of the order bat by accumulating a slash line of .312/.397/.553/.950 (BA/OBP/SLG/OPS). The sky is the limit for Votto, as he has improved, quite dramatically, from one season to the next. In 2010, he has not slowed one bit as he currently leads the National League in OBP, SLG and OPS. So, while the Cincinnati Reds have their sights set on a playoff berth, it is clear that this would be impossible without their first baseman crushing opposing pitchers? wills since opening day. As Votto approaches his first arbitration eligible offseason, he will undoubtedly become a rich man over the winter. For now, the Reds are enjoying his lofty offensive production for a paltry salary of $550,000. PARAS factor: 1.7% Aubrey Huff ? In looking at the National League before the season, it was apparent that San Francisco was going to need some unexpected offense to support their superb pitching in order to compete for the division title. The two most glaring deficiencies in the lineup were the leadoff spot (see Torres, Andres, above) and power in the heart of the order. When the Giants signed Huff in the offseason, they were taking a risk hoping that he would revert to his 2008 ways (.912 OPS), rather than replicate his dismal 2009 campaign (.694 OPS, and, no, that is not a typo). If he continues on the path he has been on since the calendar turned to May, and he has shown no signs of slowing, he will set career highs in walk rate (12.2%), OBP (.393) and OPS (.932). Huff has also made positive contributions on the defensive side of the ball as well. Signed to be the team?s primary first baseman, Huff was more than willing to accept a role that has divided his time between left field, right field and first base. The Giants could not have imagined this level of versatility when they signed Huff in the offseason, as he hadn?t stepped foot in the outfield in roughly four years. As the highest paid player on this list, he will pull in a cool $3 million for his services in 2010. PARAS factor: 9.4% Angel Pagan ? The New York Mets knew full well going into the season that they were going to be without their five-time all star center fielder, Carlos Beltran, for a good portion of the year. It sure is a good thing, then, that they have another slick fielding center fielder from Puerto Rico on the roster to fill in for him in Angel Pagan. Pagan is the kind of player that doesn?t necessarily wow you with any particular aspect of his game, but, at the same time, he performs just about everything on a baseball field well. He is willing to take some pitches, as evidenced by his walk rate of 8.9%. He hits for above average power, especially for a center fielder, judging by his .475 slugging percentage. His strikeout rate is a couple percentage points below the average at 17%. He can also cause some havoc on the basepaths with his speed, having accumulated 26 stolen bases so far in 2010. All in all, Pagan is above average in all facets of the game, but spectacular at none. Add this to the fact that he plays one of the best centerfields in the National League and you have yourself quite a package, all for the low, low price of $1.45 million. PARAS factor: 4.5% Evan Longoria ? Not often do you hear of a rookie signing what is essentially a nine-year contract extension merely six days into his major league career. Tampa Bay knew exactly what kind of player they had on their hands when they did precisely that in 2008. In his third season at the major league level, Longoria is exhibiting the all-around play on both sides of the ball that the Rays have come to expect from their franchise third baseman. Many pundits inside and around the game of baseball have called Longoria the best glove man at the hot corner in all of MLB since the moment he stepped on the field. The advanced defensive metrics support this notion, as he has posted a 15.9 UZR/150 in his career. Although his slugging percentage is down slightly this season to .482, he has improved both his walk rate (12.1%) and reduced his strikeout rate (21.9%) for the second straight season, proving that Longoria?s game is still on the upslope of his learning curve. A benefit to both parties, the Rays and Longoria will not have to sweat the idea of a looming arbitration hearing in coming years, a product of the team-friendly contract that runs through 2016. In 2010, the third year of the contract, Longoria will make $950,000 in exchange for leading his Rays on a chase for a second playoff birth in three years. PARAS factor: 3.0% Jose Bautista ? The final bang for your buck All-Star is none other than the Major League Baseball home run leader himself. The vagabond 3B/OF who once accumulated 12+ plate appearances for four different major league teams in one season in 2004 is having the season of his career thus far, and it?s not even close. Compared to his career averages before 2010, Bautista is outperforming his batting average by 22 points (.260), on-base percentage by 46 points (.375), slugging percentage by a whopping 196 points (.596) and OPS by 242 points (.971). Rarely does a player take this significant a step forward at the age of 29, but Bautista has mashed since day one this season. Only time will tell if he will continue this success in years to come, but one thing is for sure: as a super two going into his fourth arbitration eligible offseason, he is sure to drastically improve upon his 2010 salary of $2.4 million. PARAS factor: 7.5% Players like the ones listed above are what general managers are constantly on the lookout for. Whether it is a hot, young prospect like Votto or Longoria, a veteran poised to post a career year a la Huff or Bautista, or a minor league journeyman coming out of nowhere like Pagan or Torres, inexpensive production is invaluable in today?s major leagues. With the hundreds of millions that get tossed around in the free agent market, it is mind-blowing to think about how a player like Andres Torres can outperform an established star like Alex Rodriguez by 72 points with respect to OPS for 1/75 of the cost. Obviously, finding such a player isn?t easy, but having a scout or someone in a similar capacity in your organization with an eye for untapped talent can be exponentially valuable. Players like these crop up every season, and it is yet another reason why any given baseball season is so unpredictable and fun to watch.