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Las Vegas 51s Preparing for New Era

Las Vegas ballpark rendering

Headlined by a rebranding and a move to a new ballpark, the Las Vegas 51s (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) will see sweeping changes in 2019. 

Construction is underway for the new Las Vegas Ballpark, the Downtown Summerlin facility that is set to open for the team next year. Located near a slate of amenities that includes City National Arena–the training facility for the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights–the 10,000-seat ballpark should be an upgrade over the 51s’ current home, Cashman Field, in terms of both fan and player offerings.

With the new ballpark will come a new name, as the 51s have announced plans to rebrand in time for the 2019 season. A name-the-team sweepstakes launched last month and reportedly prompted a strong response from fans, adding some momentum as the franchise works toward rolling out its new branding. More from The Las Vegas Sun:

Chuck Johnson, Las Vegas 51s general manager, was surprised by the interest, as the team took in more than 2,500 entries.

The team hopes the new name will focus on an aspect of Southern Nevada that stands out.

“We want to take advantage of some of the uniqueness to our marketplace. So a name is going to focus on geography or indigenous species or something,” Johnson said. “Minor league baseball lends itself to be super creative in that aspect, and we decided as a team that it was a good time to rebrand and make the move to the new ballpark 100 percent complete.”

Another big change for 2019 will be Las Vegas’s major league parent club. The New York Mets have served in that role since 2013, but their purchase of the Syracuse Chiefs (International League) will trigger a shift of their Class AAA operations for next season and beyond. With a new ballpark on the way, however, Las Vegas figures to be one of the more intriguing options for an affiliation at the Class AAA level. We will be tracking affiliation news on our Affiliate Dance page.

Rendering courtesy HOK.

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