SAN DIEGO -- The Athletics¡¯ front office made a big score on Wednesday morning, one they hope will lead to more big scores from their offense.

Oakland acquired outfielder Starling Marte from the Marlins for left-hander Jesús Luzardo, the A¡¯s announced. The Marlins also will cover the majority of the roughly $4.6 million left of Marte¡¯s salary this season.

¡°We felt like Starling was the best position player out there,¡± A¡¯s general manager David Forst said. ¡°It¡¯s not easy to trade a player like Jes¨²s. But, bottom line, we¡¯ve always said when the team and this clubhouse performs and puts itself in this position, it¡¯s on us to try to do whatever we can to help them.¡±

TRADE DETAILS
A's get: OF Starling Marte, cash considerations
Marlins get: LHP Jes¨²s Luzardo

The A¡¯s entered their series finale against the Padres on Wednesday holding the second American League Wild Card spot but with a mere one-game lead over the Mariners.

Marte, 32, was one of the most discussed position players on this year¡¯s trade market. The 10-year veteran entered Wednesday with a career-high .859 OPS, seven homers and 22 steals, and he has also been a solid defender with 5 Outs Above Average recorded in center field, per Statcast. He was linked to big-market clubs, including the Yankees, Giants and Astros in the past several weeks, but the A¡¯s instead sealed the deal by parting with a 23-year-old pitcher who was their top-ranked prospect as recently as last year.

¡°Not only does it give us a bat and solid defense, it¡¯s also a dynamic athletically,¡± A¡¯s manager Bob Melvin said of Marte. ¡°His run dynamic -- he steals bases. He does everything. This is a big-time player. This adds to our team right now, for sure.¡±

Marte will join the A¡¯s on Thursday in Anaheim for the first game of a series against the Angels. He should provide an immediate boost to an offense that has been stuck in neutral. For the season, the A¡¯s are a middle-of-the-pack offense, ranking 15th among the 30 MLB teams with 4.36 runs per game entering Wednesday. That has taken a downturn in July, as the A¡¯s have gone 8-12, including four straight losses entering the series finale at Petco Park. The A¡¯s rank ahead of only the Rangers this month with 3.7 runs per game.

¡°This makes us a better team, a much better team,¡± Melvin said.

Added Forst: ¡°We¡¯ve lost a number of one-run games. The pitching staff has had an incredibly thin margin of error. ¡­ We do feel like a little jolt for the offense is going to be helpful.¡±

Marte reportedly turned down a contract extension offered by the Marlins earlier this summer and could be a short-term rental for the A¡¯s, a la recent Trade Deadline acquisitions Tommy La Stella, Mike Minor and Tanner Roark. But reliever Jake Diekman also came to Oakland via a Deadline deal and ultimately re-signed after becoming a free agent.

Luzardo carried big expectations after an electric debut in 2019 that carried into a strong performance in that year¡¯s American League Wild Card Game. But the southpaw¡¯s road has gotten rockier since then; he recorded a 4.12 ERA in ¡¯20, and he has struggled to a 6.87 ERA during a ¡¯21 season that¡¯s included an IL stint when he injured his pitching hand after banging a table while playing video games. He was also optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas in June.

Luzardo has struggled in Triple-A, too, with a 6.52 ERA across eight starts with Las Vegas, but he represents a high-upside project for the Marlins¡¯ coaching staff. He pitched for nearby Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., before the Nationals selected him in the third round of the 2016 MLB Draft.

¡°We sent him down because he wasn¡¯t performing in the big leagues at this time,¡± Forst said. ¡°When you are in a playoff race, everything we did was about the now. I still think he¡¯s got a lot of good baseball in him. He¡¯s only 23 years old. But, ultimately, we¡¯re focused on 2021, on this team. Sometimes, you have to give up good players. We know that, and we focus on what we¡¯re getting.

¡°I can¡¯t tell you what caused him to have trouble in the big leagues. We know he gave up a bunch of home runs. We talked about fastball command. I¡¯m not sure there¡¯s one thing right now. By baseball standards, he¡¯s still a very young pitcher.¡±

Trade Deadline week is relatively young, too, as the pace grows more hectic the closer the Deadline is (1 p.m. PT on Friday). Might the A¡¯s stay in the fray after landing Marte on Wednesday and reliever Andrew Chafin on Monday?

¡°It¡¯s never enough,¡± Forst said, chuckling. ¡°We¡¯re going to continue to have conversations.¡±