Bowling Green Hot Rods

• Location: Bowling Green, KY
• League: South Atlantic League 2009; Midwest League 2010-2019; High-A East 2021; South Atlantic League 2022-
• Affiliation: Tampa Bay Rays 2009-present
• Ballpark: Bowling Green Ballpark 2009-present

Team History

The Bowling Green Hot Rods, formerly of the Midwest League, briefly in High-A East, and now in the South Atlantic League, jumped jointly with the Lake County Captains from the SAL to the MwL in 2010 before coming full circle. The Tampa Bay Rays farmhands play their homes games at Bowling Green Ballpark in Bowling Green, KY.

MLB's 2021 Minor League Reorganization moved the Rods up one level. Eleven of the Midwest's 12 surviving clubs comprised High-A Central, now again the MwL, in 2021. The Rods, however, were moved to High-A East - now again the SAL. Geographically, although not if one draws legacy lines between the old and new circuits, that effectively reverses the Rods' league jump.

The Rods and the Sally League's Lexington Legends - would-be natural rivals separated by their circuits - scheduled home-and-home exhibitions in 2020 and 2021. The Coronavirus pandemic canceled the first, and then the minors' overhaul canceled the Lexington franchise.

In 2019, the Hot Rods decided to pay tribute to a local event by renaming themselves for one game as the "Bowling Green Sinkholes". It was to commemorate the huge sinkhole that opened up beneath the nearby National Corvette Museum in 2014, swallowing eight vintage cars.

The Rods' colors, despite their city's name, don't include green.

They play Copa de la Diversión Hispanic engagement campaign games as Bólidos de Bowling Green (Bowling Green Racing Cars).

Year-by-Year Record

2009-2015 logo

Year	League	Record	Finish	Manager	Playoffs	Hitting Coach	Pitching Coach	Coach
2009	South Atlantic League	64-74	14th	Matt Quatraro		Hector Torres	R.C. Lichtenstein
2010	Midwest League	61-78	12th	Brady Williams		Manny Castillo	R.C. Lichtenstein
2011	Midwest League	77-63	5th	Brady Williams	Lost in 1st round	Manny Castillo	R.C. Lichtenstein
2012	Midwest League	80-60	2nd	Brady Williams	Lost in 1st round	Manny Castillo	Bill Moloney
2013	Midwest League	82-56	2nd	Jared Sandberg	Lost in 1st round	Manny Castillo	Kyle Snyder
2014	Midwest League	61-77	14th (t)	Michael Johns	Lost in 1st round	Dan DeMent	Bill Moloney
2015	Midwest League	69-69	10th	Reinaldo Ruiz		Dan DeMent	Bill Moloney
2016	Midwest League	84-55	2nd (t)	Reinaldo Ruiz		Manny Castillo	Bill Moloney
2017	Midwest League	72-65	5th (t)	Reinaldo Ruiz	Lost in 1st round		Bill Moloney	Joe Szekely, Hector Torres
2018	Midwest League	90-49	1st	Craig Albernaz	League Champs	Manny Castillo	Brian Reith	Jeremy Owens
2019	Midwest League	81-58	2nd (t)	Reinaldo Ruiz	Lost in 1st round	Manny Castillo	Brian Reith	Jeremy Owens
2020	Season cancelled
2021	High-A East	82-36	1st	Jeff Smith	League Champs	Brady North	Jim Paduch	Skeeter Barnes
2022	South Atlantic League	78-52	1st	Jeff Smith	League Champs	Paul Rozzelle	Alberto Bastardo	Skeeter Barnes
2023	South Atlantic League	69-57	3rd	Rafael Valenzuela		Paul Rozzelle	R.C. Lichtenstein	Skeeter Barnes
2024	South Atlantic League			Rafael Valenzuela		Braxton Martinez	Jim Paduch	Perry Roth

Related Sites

Official site