Hammel was lit up on Friday, allowing five earned runs and three homers only over three innings. No way to sugar coat this one, Hammel has been flat terrible since joining the A's via trade in July. The three homers the Braves hit off him on Friday were all bad mistake pitches right in the middle of the zone. In seven starts since joining the A's, Hammel is now 1-5 with a 6.75 ERA. He had been better his last two starts, but this blowup has to make his hold on a starting rotation spot weak at best. The A's have two off days before his next start, so it is possible they could skip his next turn in the rotation which would be against the second-place Angels.