With latest injury news, could Jays and Dodgers pull off a trade?

With the news that the Los Angeles Dodgers are shortstop Gavin Lux fell down with a cruciate ligament tear on Monday, teams across the league will be on the phone to see if the reigning NL West champions need a new infielder.

While we don’t know if Toronto Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins called the Dodgers, if he felt like it he could offer a legitimate replacement for Lux.

Now this veteran Whit Merrifield is part of the infield conversation, along with Cavan Biggio And Santiago Espinal, the Jays have plenty of depth for a single position at second base. Although we don’t know for sure, Merrifield is projected from FanGraphs’ Roster Resource is said to be the primary second baseman, at least early in the season.

That leaves 2022 All-Star Espinal as the prime candidate for a potential deal with Los Angeles. He has shown his versatility and ability to move around infield, playing second, third and junior for the past three seasons.

If the Dodgers decide their internal options, including Miguel Rojaswon’t cut it for the full season, they might be inclined to trade for a player like Espinal.

The Jays could get a young arm in return to solidify their pitching depth. Los Angeles has an abundance of pitchers in Triple-A, and although they had to contribute to the rotation this winter, they went out and became veterans Noah Syndergard instead of promoting a rookie like Ryan Pepiot.

MLB Pipeline ranks Pepiot as the Dodgers’ sixth overall pick and their second pitching prospect. The 25-year-old made his major league debut last season and would be a great addition to the Jays’ Triple-A pitching depth.

Pepiot would help the Jays fill a gap in their left-handed pitching ranks. While it’s no secret that they’re skinny at lefties at the MLB level, they’re sorely lacking in southpaws in their major-league-able minor ranks. The organization has no other leftists on the 40-person list except Tim Mayza, Yusei Kikuchi and the injured Hyun Jin Ryuwho will soon be placed on the 60-day injured list.

Over 36.1 innings in 2022, he recorded a 3.47 ERA and 1.46 WHIP but maintained a strong 10.40 K/9. While he needs to improve his control as he struggled with control in his nine appearances last season, the right-hander looked good in his spring debut this year, throwing 17 of his 21 spots for strikes.