The Mets' current plan is to have Vientos be their first baseman this season, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports.

That's assuming Pete Alonso isn't re-signed, which is now the expectation. Vientos had a breakout season offensively in 2024, slashing .266/.322/.516 with 27 home runs over 111 regular-season contests for the Mets before adding another five long balls and a .998 OPS in the playoffs. The 25-year-old earned minus-6 Outs Above Average at third base, so a move to the cold corner isn't a surprise. Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio (knee) and Luisangel Acuna are in line to compete for the third base job.

The Mets and Torrens avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year contract Thursday.

Torrens was eligible for arbitration for the second time. He's slated to open the 2025 season as the Mets' backup catcher behind Francisco Alvarez.

The Pirates signed McCutchen to a one-year, $5 million contract Monday, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

It's the same contract terms that McCutchen inked last offseason. The 38-year-old collected a .739 OPS with 20 home runs in 2024 as the Pirates' full-time designated hitter. He should have the same role for Pittsburgh in 2025.

Atlanta signed Capel to a minor-league contract Dec. 7.

Capel, 27, saw some spot duty with the Reds in 2024 but spent most of the year at Triple-A Louisville, putting up a .774 OPS with 12 homers in 74 contests. The outfielder is likely to begin the 2025 season at Triple-A Gwinnett.

Manager Dave Roberts stated he's unlikely to deploy Ohtani (shoulder) as a pitcher during the team's opening series against the Cubs in Tokyo, Sonja Chen of MLB.com reports.

The Dodgers are expected to exercise caution as the club brings him back to the mound following Tommy John surgery, so this report isn't a big surprise. Roberts also mentioned that once Ohtani is cleared to pitch, he expects to utilize the reigning MVP in the DH slot on the days he pitches.

Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said Monday that the team views Vientos as its third baseman right now, Abbey Mastracco of the New York Daily News reports.

"Right now" is key, of course, as the Mets seem virtually certain to acquire a corner infielder and that will help determine whether Vientos plays the hot or cold corner. Regardless of the position he plays, Vientos is going to occupy a spot in the middle of the Mets' lineup, perhaps batting third after Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto.

Ohtani was unanimously named the National League's 2024 Most Value Player on Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

In the first year of his record-setting contract with the Dodgers, Ohtani won his first MVP in the National League unanimously. Having won two MVPs with the Angels prior, the superstar has now won an MVP in three of the last four seasons. He did so without throwing a pitch for the entirety of the 2024 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery and became the first designated hitter to win the award. The 30-year-old produced the first ever 50-50 season in MLB history, and he fell just four points shy of a Triple Crown with a .310 average. While speaking with the media Thursday, Ohtani noted that his goal is to be cleared to pitch by Opening Day, but that both he and the Dodgers will take things cautiously as he recovers from the shoulder surgery he underwent after the World Series to repair a torn labrum, per Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register.

The Mets signed Meneses on Thursday to a minor-league deal with an invite to MLB spring training, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

Meneses elected free agency Nov. 4 after the Nationals removed him from their 40-man roster. The 32-year-old was in the middle of his third season in the big leagues before being optioned to Triple-A Rochester on July 4 as he was putting up his worst season yet. He had an OPS of .593 during 2024 with the Nationals, but was able to put up a .793 OPS in the minors after his demotion. The right-handed bat now has a chance to earn a spot on the roster of a National League East opponent.

Ohtani's left shoulder surgery is likely to delay his pitching debut for the Dodgers, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Ohtani underwent surgery Tuesday to repair a labrum tear in his left (non-throwing) shoulder, an injury he suffered during Game 2 of the World Series. While the expectation is that he will be ready to serve as a designated hitter during spring training and Opening Day, the timetable for Ohtani's first start on the mound for the Dodgers looks cloudy. The team elected to pause Ohtani's throwing program during the playoffs as he comes back from Tommy John surgery so as to not overtax him, and now the shoulder surgery will further delay his throwing program indefinitely. The Dodgers have a two-game series versus the Cubs in Japan from March 18-19 and then have their domestic opener against the Tigers on March 27. GM Brandon Gomes this week didn't rule out Ohtani being ready to pitch by the domestic opener, but Gomes "did not cast an optimistic picture of that possibility," per Harris. Ohtani was going to have workload restrictions in place on the mound in his first year back from Tommy John surgery anyway, so in that respect the delay isn't a huge deal. However, the situation creates an air of uncertainty with the two-way superstar's status. More clarity on Ohtani's situation should be available later in the offseason and into spring training.

Ohtani underwent surgery Tuesday to repair a labrum tear in his left shoulder, Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com reports.

Ohtani's injury, which he suffered in Game 2 of the World Series on Oct. 26, was initially described as a slight dislocation of his left shoulder. The labrum tear was a result of the dislocation, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports. After suffering the injury, the NL MVP frontrunner recorded just one hit across 11 at-bats in the final three games of the series. The Dodgers expect he will be ready for spring training.