Incorrect assumption on the DFA. If a player gets DFA, the Jays still have 7 days to work out a trade with any interested teams, of there’s no takers he can then be placed on either outright waivers or unconditional waivers.
Bit of a snag with Espinal though, if he made it through outright waivers, he could refuse to go to AAA since he has more than 3 years of service time.
Also, it’s rare-ish for a player to be claimed on release waivers since teams can just wait for him to clear, become a free agent, then sign him for the pro-rated minimum while the releasing team pays the bulk of his salary.