| Las Vegas Aviators | |||||
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| Minor league affiliations | |||||
| Class | Triple-A (1983–present) | ||||
| League | Pacific Coast League (1983–present) | ||||
| Division | West Division | ||||
| Major league affiliations | |||||
| Team | Oakland Athletics /Athletics (2019–present) | ||||
| Previous teams |
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| Minor league titles | |||||
| League titles(3) |
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| Division titles(6) |
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| First-half titles(5) |
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| Second-half titles(3) |
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| Team data | |||||
| Name | Las Vegas Aviators (2019–present) | ||||
Previous names |
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| Colors | Navy blue, orange, tangerine, gold, yellow, gray[1][2] | ||||
| Mascot | Spruce the Goose and The Aviator | ||||
| Ballpark | Las Vegas Ballpark (2019–present) | ||||
Previous parks | Cashman Field (1983–2018) | ||||
Owner/ Operator | Seaport Entertainment Group | ||||
| Manager | Fran Riordan[3] | ||||
| Website | milb.com/las-vegas | ||||
TheLas Vegas Aviators, formerly known as theLas Vegas 51s andLas Vegas Stars, are aMinor League Baseball team of thePacific Coast League (PCL) and theTriple-A affiliate of theAthletics. They are located inSummerlin South, Nevada, a community inLas Vegas. The Aviators play their home games atLas Vegas Ballpark, a 10,000-seat facility which opened in 2019. The team previously played atCashman Field from 1983 to 2018.
The team has been members of the Pacific Coast League since 1983, including the 2021 season when it was known as the Triple-A West. They won thePCL championship as the Stars in 1986 and 1988 and again in 2025 as the Aviators.
The Las VegasPacific Coast League franchise traces its roots to thePortland Beavers who entered the PCL in 1919 after a two-year hiatus. The team relocated toSpokane, Washington, in 1973, becoming theSpokane Indians. The franchise moved once again in 1983, becoming the Las Vegas Stars.
The Stars, who were theTriple-A affiliate of theSan Diego Padres, became the first professional sports team to play in Las Vegas since theLas Vegas Quicksilvers soccer club who played a single season in 1977. The Stars' inaugural season was quite successful, posting an 83–60 record and winning the first-half championship for the Southern Division leading to a playoff berth, but eventually losing to theAlbuquerque Dukes. The following season, the Stars posted another successful campaign, going 71–65 and winning their second division championship (first half), but ultimately losing in the league semifinals to theHawaii Islanders. After a dismal 1985 campaign, the Stars finished the 1986 season with an 80–62 record and won the second half of the Southern Division. In the league semifinals, the Stars defeated thePhoenix Firebirds, 3–2, and went on to win their firstPCL championship, defeating theVancouver Canadians in five games. The Stars won their second PCL championship in 1988, once again defeating Vancouver, this time in four games.
After winning five division titles and two league championships in their first six years, the Stars hit a skid, posting a .500 or better record only four times and winning shares of only two division championships in the following 12 years. The Stars were unable to advance past the first round of the playoffs in both seasons that they qualified. The team's affiliation with the Padres ended after the 2000 season.
In 2001, Las Vegas became the top farm club of theLos Angeles Dodgers. The new affiliation was accompanied by rebranding to the Las Vegas 51s in reference toArea 51, a military base located north-northwest of Las Vegas legendary for rumors of its housingUFOs and otherextraterrestrial technology. The team adopted a logo featuring a grey alien head and introduced an extraterrestrial mascot named Cosmo.
A new affiliate, moniker, and appearance did not translate into improved performance on the field. The 51s experienced only two winning seasons during their eight years as the Triple-A Dodgers. Their only division title came under managerBrad Mills in 2002 as the team posted the best record in the league at 85–59, but lost three games to one to the eventual PCL championEdmonton Trappers.
On March 24, 2008,Mandalay Baseball Properties sold the 51s franchise to Stevens Baseball Group.[4] There were no plans to move the team,[5] and talks of building a new stadium to replace the ageingCashman Field became stagnant.[6][7] The Dodgers and the 51s had a rocky relationship during their eight-year affiliation. The Dodgers were not pleased with Cashman Field, which barely met the standards for Triple-A baseball. It had no weight room or indoor batting cages, and it was decrepit compared to other stadiums in the league. Citing the inadequacies of Cashman and lack of planning for a replacement, Los Angeles decided not to renew their player development contract (PDC) with Las Vegas after the 2008 season.[8]
Following the departure of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the 51s signed a PDC with theToronto Blue Jays, marking the first time that the 51s were affiliated with anAmerican League club.[9] The only time the team finished over .500 with the Blue Jays was in 2012 whenMarty Brown led the team to a 79–64 second-place finish. The Blue Jays ended their affiliation with the 51s after the season.
In April 2013, the team was purchased for $20 million by Summerlin Las Vegas Baseball Club, a 50/50 joint venture ofThe Howard Hughes Corporation and Play Ball Owners Group, including investors Steve Mack, Bart Wear, and Chris Kaempfer, with intentions of moving it to a proposed stadium inSummerlin near theRed Rock Resort Spa and Casino.[10][11] Howard Hughes later bought out the Play Ball group in 2017, becoming the sole owner of the team.[11]
The 51s became affiliated with theNew York Mets in 2013 when they were the only Triple-A team left without an MLB parent.[12] They won back-to-back division titles in 2013 and 2014 under managerWally Backman, but were eliminated in the Pacific Conference championship series on both occasions.
In 2017 the 51s became one of the first teams to participate in theCopa de la Diversión initiative and for selected games played as the Reyes de Plata ("Silver Kings"). The name was a nod to Nevada being the "Silver State" and a homage to the contribution migrant workers made to the mining industry of Nevada.[13]
In October 2017, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority approved a 20-year, $80 million naming rights agreement to help pay for the new $150 million 10,000-seat ballpark which opened in 2019.Las Vegas Ballpark, located in Summerlin, includes 22 suites, a center field pool, kids' zone, and several bars.[14] Construction began in 2018 and was completed for the 2019 season.[15]
In late 2017, the Mets announced plans to move its Triple-A affiliation to theSyracuse Mets beginning in 2019, meaning the 51s would be in need of a new major league affiliate.[16]
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Following the conclusion of the 2018 season, Las Vegas signed a two-year PDC with the thenOakland Athletics that ran through 2020.[17] In addition to having a new major league affiliate in 2019 and playing in a new ballpark, the team also changed its name to the Las Vegas Aviators. The name is in reference to aviation pioneerHoward Hughes. The team's new logo depicts a pilot wearing a flight helmet and utilizes their new color scheme of navy blue, orange, tangerine, gold, yellow, and gray.[1] Their first home game at Las Vegas Ballpark was a 10–2 win against theSacramento River Cats on April 9 before a sellout crowd of 11,036.[18][19] Las Vegas secured the win with a five-run second inning in whichSkye Bolt scored the winning run when he came home on a fielding error.[19] Aviators pitchersChris Bassitt andDaniel Mengden combined tostrikeout 14 Sacramento batters.[19]
The start of the 2020 season was postponed due to theCOVID-19 pandemic before ultimately being cancelled on June 30.[20][21]
With the 2021Major League Baseball restructuring of Minor League Baseball, the Aviators were organized into theTriple-A West.[22] Las Vegas ended the season in third place in the Western Division with a 62–58 record.[23] No playoffs were held to determine a league champion; instead, the team with the best regular-season record was declared the winner.[24] However, 10 games that had been postponed from the start of the season were reinserted into the schedule as a postseason tournament called the Triple-A Final Stretch in which all 30 Triple-A clubs competed for the highest winning percentage.[24] Las Vegas finished the tournament tied for 13th place with a 3–3 record.[25]
In 2022, the Triple-A West became known as the Pacific Coast League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.[26]
In 2024, ownership of the team and stadium transferred toSeaport Entertainment Group, aspin-off from Howard Hughes Holdings.[27]
The Aviators qualified for the 2025 postseason with a first-half title win.[28] They defeated theTacoma Rainiers, 2–0, to win the PCL championship.[29] In theTriple-A National Championship Game versus theInternational League championJacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, Las Vegas was defeated, 8–7.[30]
| League | The team's final position in the league standings |
|---|---|
| Division | The team's final position in the divisional standings |
| GB | Games behind the team that finished in first place in the division that season |
| ‡ | Class champions (1983–present) |
| † | League champions (1983–present) |
| § | Conference champions (1998–2020) |
| * | Division champions (1983–2022) |
| ^ | Postseason berth (1983–present) |
| Season | League | Regular-season | Postseason | MLB affiliate | Ref. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record | Win % | League | Division | GB | Record | Win % | Result | ||||
| 1983 ^ | PCL | 83–60 | .580 | 2nd | 2nd | 2 | 2–3 | .400 | Won First Half Southern Division title Lost Southern Division title vs.Albuquerque Dukes, 3–2[31] | San Diego Padres | [32] |
| 1984 ^ | PCL | 71–65 | .522 | 3rd | 2nd | 14 | 1–3 | .250 | Won First Half Southern Division title Lost Southern Division title vs.Hawaii Islanders, 3–1[33] | San Diego Padres | [34] |
| 1985 | PCL | 65–79 | .451 | 10th | 5th | 19+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [35] |
| 1986 ^ * † | PCL | 80–62 | .563 | 3rd | 2nd | 1 | 6–4 | .600 | Won Second Half Southern Division title Won Southern Division title vs.Phoenix Firebirds, 3–2 WonPCL championship vs.Vancouver Canadians, 3–2[36] | San Diego Padres | [37] |
| 1987 ^ | PCL | 69–73 | .486 | 7th | 4th | 8 | 0–3 | .000 | Won Second Half Southern Division title Lost Southern Division title vs.Albuquerque Dukes, 3–0[38] | San Diego Padres | [39] |
| 1988 ^ * † | PCL | 74–66 | .529 | 4th | 2nd | 11 | 6–1 | .857 | Won First Half Southern Division title Won Southern Division title vs.Albuquerque Dukes, 3–0 WonPCL championship vs.Vancouver Canadians, 3–1[40] | San Diego Padres | [41] |
| 1989 | PCL | 74–69 | .517 | 4th | 3rd | 6+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [42] |
| 1990 | PCL | 58–86 | .403 | 9th (tie) | 5th | 34 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [43] |
| 1991 | PCL | 65–75 | .464 | 8th | 5th | 16 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [44] |
| 1992 ^ | PCL | 74–70 | .514 | 5th | 2nd | 11+1⁄2 | 2–3 | .400 | Won First Half Southern Division title Lost Southern Division title vs.Colorado Springs Sky Sox, 3–2[45] | San Diego Padres | [46] |
| 1993 | PCL | 58–85 | .406 | 10th | 5th | 25 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [47] |
| 1994 | PCL | 56–87 | .392 | 10th | 5th | 29 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [48] |
| 1995 | PCL | 61–83 | .424 | 9th | 5th | 26+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [49] |
| 1996 ^ | PCL | 73–67 | .521 | 3rd (tie) | 1st | — | 0–3 | .000 | Won Second Half Southern Division title Lost Southern Division title vs.Phoenix Firebirds, 3–0[50] | San Diego Padres | [51] |
| 1997 | PCL | 56–85 | .397 | 10th | 5th | 31 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [52] |
| 1998 | PCL | 70–72 | .493 | 11th | 3rd | 10+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [53] |
| 1999 | PCL | 67–75 | .472 | 11th | 3rd | 6+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [54] |
| 2000 | PCL | 73–70 | .510 | 7th | 2nd | 16+1⁄2 | — | — | — | San Diego Padres | [55] |
| 2001 | PCL | 68–76 | .472 | 11th | 3rd | 7 | — | — | — | Los Angeles Dodgers | [56] |
| 2002 * | PCL | 85–59 | .590 | 1st | 1st | — | 1–3 | .250 | Won Pacific Conference Southern Division title Lost Pacific Conference title vs.Edmonton Trappers, 3–1[57] | Los Angeles Dodgers | [58] |
| 2003 | PCL | 76–66 | .535 | 3rd | 2nd | 15 | — | — | — | Los Angeles Dodgers | [59] |
| 2004 | PCL | 67–76 | .469 | 11th | 3rd | 11+1⁄2 | — | — | — | Los Angeles Dodgers | [60] |
| 2005 | PCL | 57–86 | .399 | 16th | 4th | 22+1⁄2 | — | — | — | Los Angeles Dodgers | [61] |
| 2006 | PCL | 67–77 | .465 | 12th | 3rd | 24 | — | — | — | Los Angeles Dodgers | [62] |
| 2007 | PCL | 67–77 | .465 | 13th | 4th | 17 | — | — | — | Los Angeles Dodgers | [63] |
| 2008 | PCL | 74–69 | .517 | 7th | 2nd | 8+1⁄2 | — | — | — | Los Angeles Dodgers | [64] |
| 2009 | PCL | 71–73 | .493 | 10th (tie) | 3rd (tie) | 15+1⁄2 | — | — | — | Toronto Blue Jays | [65] |
| 2010 | PCL | 66–78 | .458 | 12th | 4th | 13 | — | — | — | Toronto Blue Jays | [66] |
| 2011 | PCL | 71–73 | .493 | 6th (tie) | 2nd | 17 | — | — | — | Toronto Blue Jays | [67] |
| 2012 | PCL | 79–64 | .552 | 5th | 2nd | 6+1⁄2 | — | — | — | Toronto Blue Jays | [68] |
| 2013 * | PCL | 81–63 | .563 | 2nd | 1st | — | 1–3 | .250 | Won Pacific Conference Southern Division title Lost Pacific Conference title vs.Salt Lake Bees, 3–1 | New York Mets | [69] |
| 2014 * | PCL | 81–63 | .563 | 1st (tie) | 1st | — | 1–3 | .250 | Won Pacific Conference Southern Division title Lost Pacific Conference title vs.Reno Aces, 3–1 | New York Mets | [70] |
| 2015 | PCL | 77–67 | .535 | 7th | 2nd | 1 | — | — | — | New York Mets | [71] |
| 2016 | PCL | 70–74 | .486 | 10th (tie) | 3rd | 3+1⁄2 | — | — | — | New York Mets | [72] |
| 2017 | PCL | 56–86 | .394 | 16th | 4th | 17 | — | — | — | New York Mets | [73] |
| 2018 | PCL | 71–69 | .507 | 9th | 3rd | 11+1⁄2 | — | — | — | New York Mets | [74] |
| 2019 * | PCL | 83–57 | .593 | 2nd | 1st | — | 2–3 | .400 | Won Pacific Conference Southern Division title Lost Pacific Conference title vs.Sacramento River Cats, 3–2 | Oakland Athletics | [75] |
| 2020 | PCL | Season cancelled (COVID-19 pandemic)[21] | Oakland Athletics | [76] | |||||||
| 2021 | AAAW | 62–58 | .517 | 4th | 3rd | 11 | 3–3 | .500 | Lost series vs.Oklahoma City Dodgers, 3–2 Won series vs.Reno Aces, 1–0 Placed 13th (tie) in the Triple-A Final Stretch[25] | Oakland Athletics | [23] |
| 2022 | PCL | 71–79 | .473 | 7th | 3rd | 15 | — | — | — | Oakland Athletics | [77] |
| 2023 | PCL | 75–74 | .503 | 5th | 3rd | 12+1⁄2 | — | — | — | Oakland Athletics | [78] |
| 2024 | PCL | 74–75 | .497 | 6th | 4th | 7+1⁄2 | — | — | — | Oakland Athletics | [79] |
| 2025 ^ † | PCL | 83–67 | .553 | 3rd | 2nd | 3 | 2–1 | .333 | Won first-half title[28] WonPCL championship vs.Tacoma Rainiers, 2–0[29] LostTriple-A championship vs.Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, 1–0[30] | Oakland Athletics | [80] |
| Totals | — | 2,959–3,035 | .494 | — | — | — | 27–36 | .429 | — | — | — |
The Las Vegas Aviators are covered by Las Vegas' two daily newspapers, theLas Vegas Review-Journal andLas Vegas Sun. Every Aviators game is broadcast byKRLV 920-AM, with Russ Langer and Matt Neverett as the broadcast's play-by-play men. Several prominent sports radio and television personalities made their start as broadcaster for the Stars and 51s, most notablyFox Sports'Colin Cowherd.
| Players | Coaches/Other |
|---|---|
Pitchers
Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
| Manager
Coaches
|
PCL MVP[edit]
| PCL Rookie of the Year[edit]
| PCL Manager of the Year[edit]
| PCL Executive of the Year[edit]
|
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