Marlins trade Starling Marte for A's prospect Jesus Luzardo

The Oakland Athletics are acquiring some pop for their lineup as they chase the Houston Astros in the American League West standings. 

ESPN's Jeff Passan and others report the A's are receiving Miami Marlins center fielder Starling Marte in exchange for left-handed pitcher Jesus Luzardo. As part of the agreement, Miami is sending Oakland over $4 million to cover the rest of Marte's contract. 

Marte, 32, can hit free agency after this season. He began Wednesday batting .306 with seven home runs and 25 RBI on the campaign. 

According to Matt Kelly of the MLB website, the Astros, New York Yankees, and San Francisco Giants were also interested in landing Marte before Wednesday's development. 

Luzardo, 23, made 13 appearances and six starts for Oakland this season. He's 2-4 with a 6.87 ERA in the big leagues for the year and was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas last month. Per Kelly, Luzardo has posted a 6.52 ERA in eight starts for Vegas but is under team control through the 2025 season.

Second-place Oakland trails the Astros by six games in the division. The Marlins, meanwhile, are in last place in the National League East at 44-57.