It would seem weird for the A’s to continue to keep the AAA affiliate in the same market as they are so I have to think that the Aviators will cease operations when the stadium is completed.

To me, the smart move would be for the A’s to make a deal with the Fresno Grizzlies to be their new AAA team and return them back to the PCL.

The Colorado Rockies would then need a new A team in the California League. Could they revive the Lancaster Jets? Maybe the sign a deal with one of these new Pioneer League teams in Davis or Oakland?

Thr Lancaster JetHawks stadium is being converted for a soccer stadium, it is no longer an option.

The AAA team playing in Summerlin rather than Las Vegas proper might lend a modicum of viability - we have Houston/Sugar Land, Minnesota/Saint Paul, and Atlanta/Gwinnett as current examples of such setups. San Jose gets an honorable mention for having the Class A affiliate of the Giants.

Oakland would certainly be the least disruptive, as far as affiliated leagues go. I don't know if the rule about minor league teams being in adjacent counties is still in effect, so that presumably rules out Davis, assuming Sacramento doesn't get it shot down anyway.

New Orleans is available as they lost their AAA team to Wichita after 2019, only to have Wichita emerge from the pandemic as a member of the AA Texas League.

Colorado Springs, playing in the Pioneer League as the Rocky Mountain Vibes, probably is the most AAA-ready market in the west not currently in AAA.

If you move the Aviators to Fresno, one option would be to put the California League team in Summerlin where the Aviators play now, it's not like its far out of the footprint. Fresno and Visalia aren't even in the same division in the California League despite being each other's closest league rival. MLB Las Vegas and Colorado trade affiliates at the Single A level so the new Aviators are affiliated with the Athletics:

Pacific Coast League
West - Sacramento River Cats (SF), Fresno Grizzlies (LV), Tacoma Rainiers (SEA), Reno Aces (ARZ), Salt Lake Bees (LAA)
East - Sugar Land Space Cowboys (HOU), Round Rock Express (TEX), Oklahoma City Baseball Club (LAD), El Paso Chihuahuas (SD), Albuquerque Isotopes (COL)

California League
North - Modesto Nuts (SEA), San Jose Giants (SF), Stockton Ports, (COL), Visalia Rawhide (ARZ),
South - Las Vegas Aviators (LV), Inland Empire 66ers (LAA), Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (LAD), Lake Elsinore Storm (SD)

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Way overthinking it. You had your answer right here at the start:

(07-04-2024 09:13 PM)chargeradio Wrote:  The AAA team playing in Summerlin rather than Las Vegas proper might lend a modicum of viability - we have Houston/Sugar Land, Minnesota/Saint Paul, and Atlanta/Gwinnett as current examples of such setups.

There's no need for the Aviators to relocate even when the Athletics arrive in Vegas. So no further realignment/relocation is needed.

Who is going to want to attend minor league baseball in the outskirts of LV once the As move in? If the As don’t care about attendance for their AAA affiliate, that set up works fine, but it’s going to look really sad.

(08-23-2026 12:36 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  Who is going to want to attend minor league baseball in the outskirts of LV once the As move in? If the As don’t care about attendance for their AAA affiliate, that set up works fine, but it’s going to look really sad.

The A’s don’t own the Aviators, so they probably don’t care. I believe that Fresno will get back to the PCL once there is MLB expansion. It would work for the LA Angels, particularly if Salt Lake City gets a team. I just wonder if there’s a city that would be interested in a California League team