Under The Knife 3/1/23

Depth is a Luxury

Too many injuries for an intro, so let’s get to the injuries:

GAVIN LUX, IF LAD (sprained knee)

Gavin Lux took a couple bad steps and ended his season*. Those steps overloaded his knee, causing sprains of the ACL and LCL. He’ll need surgery to reconstruct or repair those ligaments and the standard reconstruction takes nine to twelve months to return from. We’ve seen good comebacks from several recent ACL reconstructions, including Ronald Acuna Jr last year.

As a shortstop, Lux will need more lateral stability and quickness than an outfielder typically, as well as some in-swing stability. Imagine the hitting motion, where a hitter drifts back, then explodes forward. Both legs - push and landing - will have lateral stress, in different ways and vectors. This complicating factor might extend his rehab some over an isolated ACL injury, but they tend to correct in rehab concurrently.

The most likely scenario is that Lux is out for the year and back for spring training next year with some limitations. I question whether he’ll be ready to play at SS, though it’s certainly possible. I’m also curious if the Dodgers will need to go out and get a shortstop on more than a fill-in basis. Chris Taylor and Miguel Vargas are the internal options, with no minor leaguer at the ready. On the outside, names like Didi Gregorius and Andrelton Simmons are the best available free agents, while I doubt someone like Royce Lewis or Ronny Mauricio could be pried loose.

*Yes, this is where I remind you that Fertilized ACL surgery exists. It’s theoretically possible that Lux could be back in six months, which would be September.