Morning Rundown: Jase Bowen with more hits, Brannigan with XBH

Salt River improve to 3-4 on the season.

Backed by another solid start from Jackson Jobe, the Salt River Rafters picked up their third win of the AFL season on Monday.

Jobe, the third overall pick in 2021, pitched four innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out four batters. He picked up the win, giving him two on the season and currently the league leader.

Sterlin Thompson has been among the best players in the AFL so far a week in, and he added to that after hitting a two-run double in the bottom of the first inning. It was the first of his two hits on the day.

After a brief rally by Scottsdale in the second, Salt River put two more runs on the board in the fourth, extending the lead out to 5-2.

Up 7-5 going into the ninth, Salt River held on despite one final rally, Juan Mejia closed things out to earn the save.

— Jase Bowen continued his incredible start to the AFL schedule, picking up a pair of hits on Monday, as well as his sixth RBI. He’s also the only player in Arizona to play in all seven games.

The two hits make him the third player in the league to reach double digits.

— After picking up his first hit on Saturday, Jack Brannigan made it two games in a row he has reached safely after doubling on Monday. It was his first extra-base hit as well.

He would later score on one of Bowen’s singles. It appeared that Brannigan was taking off with the pitch, trying to steal third, but Bowen put the ball in play, allowing him to score.

That came after his first at-bat that showed some of his struggles, swinging at a bat pitch out the zone for the strikeout.