Aviators fall in Triple-A title game after dramatic ending — PHOTOS
The Las Vegas Aviators and the announced attendance of 10,129 people inside Las Vegas Ballpark felt every range of emotion during a wild ninth inning in the Triple-A national championship game Saturday night.
The Aviators, playing as the visiting team, had erased a four-run deficit in the top of the ninth and were three outs away from winning their first Triple-A title.
But those hopes came to a sudden end with one swing of the bat.
Jacksonville’s Jacob Berry hit a walk-off two-run home run to right-center field, and the Jumbo Shrimp defeated Las Vegas 8-7 to win the Triple-A title in front of a sellout crowd at Las Vegas Ballpark.
“Sometimes it works — it worked out a lot today — and sometimes it doesn’t,” Aviators manager Fran Riordan said. “It’s just a shame. My heart hurts for the 28 players and the organization and the 10,000 fans that showed up and really were outstanding, especially in the ninth inning.”
Las Vegas (85-68), the PCL champion, gave its crowd plenty to cheer for in the ninth. Trailing 6-2, the Aviators got a leadoff single from Daniel Susac and pinch hitter Luke Mann followed with a walk. Denzel Clarke singled to score Susac and a Nick Martini groundout brought home Mann to cut the deficit to 6-4.
That brought up Bryan Lavastida who swung at the first pitch he saw and crushed a three-run homer to the pool in right-center to put the Aviators ahead 7-6.
“It was the loudest I’ve ever heard the stadium,” Riordan, who was coaching third base, said of the reaction to Lavastida’s blast. “I wish I was in the dugout when it happened because it was one of the more exciting moments on a baseball field I’ve ever experienced. To take it all in and know we had come all the way back was a pretty cool scene.”
There were still three outs to get. Las Vegas brought in Jake Walkinshaw to get the final three outs, as the right-hander had done when the Aviators defeated Tacoma on Wednesday night in a three-game sweep of the PCL championship series.
Jacksonville’s Jack Winkler led off the inning with a single and Walkinshaw struck out Victor Mesa Jr. Then Berry came to the plate. On the first pitch, Berry swung and as the ball sailed out, the Jumbo Shrimp (92-62) exploded out of the dugout and bullpen to begin the celebration of winning the franchise’s first Triple-A title.
“There’s not one thing the 28 players or any of the coaches that worked their butts off all year to get to this point that have anything to be upset about,” Riordan said. “They left it all out there and that’s all we ever asked them to do. That’s what they did for the 153rd time tonight.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the effort and the progress of the guys as individuals and what we were able to accomplish as a team.”
Las Vegas was seeking its first Triple-A national title. The Aviators advanced to the winner-take-all championship game after claiming their third PCL title and first since 1988.
“They have nothing to hang their heads about,” Riordan said. “I’ll go to war with the young men in that room any day of the week and they proved it again tonight that there’s some really mentally and physically gifted ballplayers in that room.”
Walkinshaw took the loss. Freddy Tarnok got the win for Jacksonville with one-third of an inning of relief. The Aviators managed just five hits, were walked seven times and reached base five times via being hit by pitch.
Las Vegas had runners at first and second in the top of the second inning with one out, but couldn’t capitalize as Drew Swift struck out and Daniel Susac flied out.
The Aviators threatened in the top of the third, loading the bases with two outs on a pair of walks and a hit by pitch. Jacksonville reliever Zack McCambley then walked Junior Perez with the bases loaded as the Aviators took a 1-0 lead. McCambley then got Cooper Bowman to ground out to end the inning.
Las Vegas starter Ken Waldichuk had rolled through the first two innings with ease. Then he hit trouble in the bottom of the third.
It started when Jacksonville’s Nathan Martorella led off with a sharp fly ball that Las Vegas left fielder Ryan Lasko failed to catch for an error. Then Winkler, the Jumbo Shrimp’s No. 9 hitter, delivered a two-run homer to left to put Jacksonville ahead 2-1.
Jacksonville added two more runs when catcher Joe Mack, the Marlins’ No. 3 prospect, homered after Berry was hit by a pitch.
The Jumbo Shrimp extended their lead in the bottom of the fifth when Mesa doubled home a run and Berry added an RBI single.
Las Vegas had another rally attempt in the top of the eighth. The Aviators loaded the bases with one out following two hit batters and a walk. Bowman’s sacrifice fly scored Alejo Lopez, but the Aviators stranded two runners when Jacksonville’s Josh White struck out Swift.
“It’s a gritty group of guys,” Waldichuk said. “Being in that dugout, there wasn’t a second thought that we (weren’t) going to stay in this game and have a chase at winning it. I don’t think that you could even say we were surprised when Lavastida hit that home run.”
Riordan wins 3rd PCL manager honor
Riordan was named the 2025 Pacific Coast League manager of the year on Saturday. It was his third time winning the award. Riordan also won it in 2019 and 2023.
He guided Las Vegas to an 83-67 regular season record and the team won the PCL first-half championship before winning the league title and earning its berth in the Triple-A championship game.
Two Aviators were named to the PCL postseason all-star team: outfielder Carlos Cortes and reliever Ben Bowden. Cortes hit .322 with 17 home runs and 71 RBIs in 71 games in Las Vegas. Bowden had a 1.36 ERA, 41 strikeouts and held opponents to a .194 batting average in 31 appearances.
Cortes and Bowden are both currently on the A’s major league roster, with Bowden on the 60-day injured list.
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
