Jake Lamb is the latest find for the Oakland Athletics

Jake Lamb was an All-Star in 2017 before injuries derailed his career, and now he looks like the latest find for the Oakland Athletics.

In 2016, Jake Lamb hit 29 home runs for the Arizona Diamondbacks. He hit 30 homers in 2017, as he earned his first career All-Star nod. But then shoulder problems took his career off the rails, and the Diamondbacks designated him for assignment last week.

In search of some third base help with Matt Chapman (hip surgery) done for the season, the Oakland A’s signed Lamb. His struggles this year with Arizona (.116/.240/.140 slash-line, zero home runs in 48 plate appearances) and struggles when he had been in the Diamondbacks lineup over the last three seasons (.199/.307/.330 slash-line) made Lamb the ultimate buy-low flier for a team that regularly mines those depths.

Lamb made his A’s debut on Monday against Seattle, going 2-for-4 with a solo home run. Then he went 1-for-3 with a double, a walk and a run scored on Tuesday night against Colorado. On Wednesday against the Rockies, Lamb went 2-for-4 with a key RBI in a 3-1 victory for Oakland.

In three games for the A’s, Lamb is 5-for-11 (.455) with a home run, two doubles, two RBI and three runs scored. Manager Bob Melvin spoke about Lamb’s immediate impact, and rejuvenation on a new team.

“Jake’s been big for us,” manager Bob Melvin said. “You get inspired coming to a different team and want to put a good showing early on in a completely different situation than what he was in with not much playing time. It makes you feel like part of the group that much quicker when you contribute right away.”

After a stretch of 16 games in 13 days, the A’s will get a day off on Thursday before a weekend series against the San Francisco Giants. Lamb has been an immediate shot in the arm, not to mention a set of fresh legs after hardly playing for Arizona. The budget-conscious A’s have unearthed another useful contributor that another team deemed expendable.