Goodbye, good boy: Finn, beloved Aviators bat dog, dies — PHOTOS

One of the most famous members of the Las Vegas Aviators family has died.

Finn, the Aviators’ black Labrador retriever Bat Dog who retired in April, died recently from cancerous tumors the size of baseballs, his owner, Fred Hassen, told the Review-Journal.

The team announced Finn’s passing Monday on social media.

“He loved to swim and he got to do that nearly every day in retirement. He went really quick, so it’s a good thing the Aviators did the retirement ceremony for a nice send-off,” Hassen said of Finn’s retirement ceremony in April.

Finn led the way in bringing a new entertainment element to minor league baseball, Hassen said.

“Others have tried the Bat Dog thing and teams are really restrictive, but the Aviators asked us to do more,” Hassen said, adding that Aviators senior director of sponsorships James Jensen was the driving force. “He always said ‘can he do it quick,’ Jim would ask about a trick. I think it was the pitch clock timer like 20 seconds or so.”

More than picking up bats

Tricks included more than chasing the bat. Bringing water to umpires, jumping over chairs, sitting on fire hydrants and much more were incorporated into Finn’s repertoire.

And with each act were videos that often went viral. Search online for Finn the Bat Dog and you’ll find dozens of videos, several with hundreds of thousands or more views.

For Hassen, the one that stood out took place on April 6, 2019, during an extremely windy opening night of the $150 million Las Vegas Ballpark in Downtown Summerlin.

As Finn approached a bat, the umpire grabbed it and tossed it away. Undeterred from his duties, Finn, never breaking stride, charged about 30 feet after the still-rolling bat, snaring it between his teeth as the boos came crashing down on the home plate umpire.

“They (fans) just crucified the guy,” Hassen said. “It was the perfect scenario. Finn had gone past the bat and maybe something blowing like a paper cup distracted him, so the ump grabbed it (the bat) and threw it toward the dugout. I made a quick video and posted it. It was late, about 9 p.m., but by the time I drove 20 minutes home it had about 300,000 views and by the next morning over a million.”

‘Grabbing a bat was natural’

Finn and Hassen of Sit Means Sit dog training company joined the club in 2016 when it was still known as the 51s and played at Cashman Field.

“He had been field-trained to pick up ducks and such, so grabbing a bat was natural,” Hassen said.

Finn typically worked the first three innings of a game, chasing bats after each hitter and eventually doing a variety of other things to entertain the crowd.

His fan base grew over the years, even as he got up there in age, Hassen said.

The retirement event in April was special, Hassen said.

“After the game we went to the mezzanine and fans wanted to take pictures with Finn,” he recalled. “There was a line that you could not see the end of. It was just crazy to me that all those people wanted a picture of Finn. We finally just had to walk the entire line and let people pet him. We would have been there all night.”

After the word got out, tributes to the beloved Bat Dog started posting online.

“FINN!!!!!! Miss you buddy. You were the best part of every Aviators game,” Minty Bets posted on X.

Clark County also paid tribute to Finn. “We hope you’re getting all the treats and belly rubs over the Rainbow Bridge,” the county posted on its website Monday.

Perks of being Finn

As a fan favorite, Finn got luxuries befitting his star status.

When the Aviators moved to the new stadium, he was given his own locker room equipped with a TV and shower to keep him cool.

“We joke around Las Vegas Ballpark is the house that Finn built,” Jensen said at the time.

In 2019, Finn was honored with his own bobblehead.

Finn may have crossed the rainbow bridge, but there’s a measure of good news for Aviators fans.

Ruin, a Belgian Malinois that helped Finn in recent years, is expected to be retrieving bats in the coming season, Hassen said.

Correction: An earlier version of this story included a misstatement about when Finn died. He died a few weeks ago.

Contact Marvin Clemons at mclemons@reviewjournal.com.