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By Aaron Coloma
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The Athletics claimed relief pitcher Connor Thomas off waivers from the Atlanta Braves on Thursday following a rough appearance Monday.
Thomas pitched against the New York Mets on Monday—entering the game with the score tied at three—and allowed 11 runs to the Mets over the course of the next 2.2 innings. The right-hander allowed 10 hits in the outing, three of which cleared the fence, and walked five batters as well.
This kind of outing isn't uncommon for Thomas, as he has struggled to produce results throughout his four-game MLB career. His debut came last season against the New York Yankees as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers, where he allowed eight earned runs through two innings. He made another appearance a week later, allowing four earned runs through 3.1 innings before going down with injury for the remainder of the season.
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He joined the Braves at the beginning of the year, signing a minor league deal, before making his third MLB appearance on July 7. He threw 3.2 innings of relief for the Braves against the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he allowed four earned runs. The Braves immediately optioned him afterwards, just to call him back up Friday.
Thomas' ERA on the season ballooned to 21.32, which is only marginally worse than his 20.83 career ERA. Through 11.2 MLB innings, Thomas has allowed 27 earned runs, coming off of 27 hits and seven homers. He has a career WHIP of 3.00.
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Can Connor Thomas Help the A's?
While Thomas' numbers are far from pretty, the Athletics need all the help they can get out of the bullpen. They currently have the worst pitching staff in the American League, posting a collective 5.31 ERA over the course of the season. That also ranks second-worst in MLB this year, only behind the Colorado Rockies.
Their bullpen has been the glaring weakness this year, as their relievers have the worst collective ERA in MLB. Since the beginning of July, A's relievers have a 7.33 ERA, allowing 22 home runs and blowing three of their six save opportunities. Their five holds are also the fewest in MLB.
While Thomas has had his struggles, the A's are desperate for assistance in relief, and will hope Thomas can turn things around and provide some stability to a struggling bullpen.
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