Oh yeah, that's not something you can come back from. Almost any piece added would be eaten instantly.
Part of that comes from the simple AI I coded up for single player. "Random Randel" doesn't take the board into consideration at all when he plays a move - that's part of the reason he gets such a huge handicap. If you're looking for more of a challenge, try playing him where you don't capture any of his pieces for X turns, or where you don't try to capture his pieces at all.