‘Really, really impressive’: Aviators clinch spot in PCL playoffs

It’s not surprising to manager Fran Riordan that the Aviators have been as good as they’ve been.

“It’s just really, really impressive when you start the season off and you’re playing well, and then you know the consistency is still there,” Riordan said.

Consistency is why the Aviators are in the middle of one of the best seasons in franchise history.

The Aviators clinched the first-half championship in the Pacific Coast League on Thursday with a 4-0 road win over the Sugar Land Space Cowboys in Texas.

It’s the 12th playoff berth in team history and first since 2019.

The Aviators will have home-field advantage for the PCL league championship. The best-of-three series against the second-half champion begins Sept. 23 at Las Vegas Ballpark.

“We’ve had some years where we’ve competed and been close,” Riordan said, “but the way we did it this year, it’s been quite a season so far.”

The Aviators (49-24) won their 12th straight game Friday, extending their second double-digit winning streak of the season.

Riordan, who is in his eighth season as manager, hasn’t been part of this kind of success often.

The Aviators went 74-75 last season. They had a strong surge in the second half to give themselves a chance to play for the league championship, but finished seven games back of the Reno Aces.

“I’m just really proud of the work these guys are able to put in and how they show up to do their jobs every day, and accomplishing something that’s pretty sweet not only for our team, but Las Vegas and the organization,” Riordan said.

The winner of the PCL championship series will face the winner of the International League championship series for the Triple-A championship.

Should the Aviators win the second half, the team with the next-best winning percentage in the second half will advance to face them.

Riordan said he’s not concerned with a potential letdown with players already looking ahead to the postseason. There’s plenty of games left to build momentum and give themselves a chance to play for a championship.

The reason for that is consistency and how it can translate to the second half.

“It’s not really a challenge,” Riordan said. “I don’t see it being a problem with these guys because of the way they attack every day, how they approach every game, and how they’re trying to get better. I don’t expect there to be a letdown with the professionalism and the talent that we have here.”

Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.