Space Cowboys Fall Short in Season Finale

Photo credit: Semetra Samuel, SFL Photographer

Space Cowboys Fall Short in Season Finale, Split Home Series with Aviators

SUGAR LAND, Texas — The Sugar Land Space Cowboys closed out their 2026 Pacific Coast League regular season at Constellation Field on Sunday, September 20, falling 3–1 to the Las Vegas Aviators. The loss capped off a week-long series against Las Vegas and left Sugar Land with a 74–75 overall record to end the campaign.

Finale Recap: Sept. 20 (Las Vegas 3, Sugar Land 1)

Left-hander Josh Hendrickson got the start for Sugar Land in Sunday's finale, pitching 3.0 innings while allowing two runs on three hits, striking out six, and walking one. Right-hander Jason Alexander took over out of the bullpen, providing five strong frames while yielding just one run on four hits to keep the Space Cowboys within striking distance.

Sugar Land's offense struggled to put together standard rallies against Las Vegas pitching throughout the day. The Space Cowboys broke through in the bottom of the seventh inning when Rayner Delgado smashed an RBI double to get Sugar Land on the board and cut the deficit to 3–1. However, the bats couldn't complete the comeback, leaving the Space Cowboys empty-handed over the final two frames. Alimber Santa pitched a scoreless ninth inning in relief for Sugar Land.

Series Overview vs. Las Vegas Aviators

The final six-game series of the year against Las Vegas featured a mix of pitching dominance and tough offensive battles at Constellation Field:

• Milestone Moments: Catcher Jason Schiavone provided several highlights during the set, including launching his first Triple-A home run and stealing his 30th base of the season to complete a rare 30/30 campaign across the Astros' minor league system.

• Historic Pitching Performance: On Friday night, right-hander Ryan Weiss turned in a headline-grabbing performance, firing 8.1 scoreless innings—the longest outing in Space Cowboys franchise history—to lead Sugar Land to a 4–0 shutout victory.

• Shutout Streaks: Sugar Land carried that pitching momentum into Saturday night, blowing the game open with a five-run fourth inning to earn a 7–0 win. The victory gave Sugar Land back-to-back shutout wins for the first time all season before Las Vegas responded in Sunday's finale.

With the 3–1 loss on Sunday, Sugar Land finalized its 2026 record at 74–75, bringing a competitive regular season to a close in front of the home crowd.