Aces Playoff Hopes Fall Short in 6-5 Defeat by Aviators

Reno Aces 5, Las Vegas Aviators 6

W: Smith (1-3) L: Melancon (0-1) S: Long (4)

First pitch: 12:07 p.m. PST | Attendance: 10,563 | Time: 2:36

Las Vegas Ballpark – Sumerlin, Nevada

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Next time out: @ Las Vegas, 3/29/24 at TBD (PST)

(RNO) TBD vs. (LV) TBD

Sumerlin, NV – Reno Aces (44-31, 88-62) saw their seven-game win streak snapped and post-season hopes dashed following a 6-5 defeat to their Silver State rivals, the Las Vegas Aviators (41-34, 75-74), Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics, in the 2023 season finale Sunday afternoon at Las Vegas Ballpark.

Trailing 6-2 in the seventh inning, the Aces chipped away with a pair of runs in the frame as the club entered the last inning down by two runs.

Jorge Barrosa gets us 𝑹𝑰𝑮𝑯𝑻 👏 𝑩𝑨𝑪𝑲 👏 𝑰𝑵 👏 𝑰𝑻 👏 pic.twitter.com/sCVes1Kccl

— Reno Aces (@Aces) September 24, 2023

Diego Castillo led the ninth off with a double off the left-field wall, and he would eventually score the Aces final run of the season on a sacrifice fly by Adrian Del Castillo, but the Aces could not reignite their Triple-A leading offense before the final out of the game.

With the loss, coupled with the Round Rock Express’s 11-6 victory over the Tacoma Rainiers, the Aces fell one game short of heading to Oklahoma City and defending their Pacific Coast League Championship against the Dodgers.

Reno’s 2023 campaign was one for the record books as the Aces set seven new team records; wins (88), batting average (.303), runs (1043), hits (1570), RBI (984), walks (815) and on-base percentage (.401).

Aces Notables:

• Jorge Barrosa: 1-for-3, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 SB, and finished the season with a 9-G hit streak.
• Kyle Lewis: 1-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 R, extended his hit streak to five games.
• Diego Castillo: 1-for-3, 1 2B, 2 R’s
• Pavin Smith: 2-for-3 and 1 SB

Season Memberships for the upcoming 2024 season are on sale now via RenoAces.com, texting “MEMBER” to 21003, or calling (775) 334-7000.

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