Bowling Green Hot Rods

Bowling Green Hot Rods Founded in 2001 Bowling Green, Kentucky
Team logo Cap insignia
Class-level
Class A
Minor league affiliations
Midwest League (2010–present) Eastern Division South Atlantic League (2001-2009)
Major league affiliations
Tampa Bay Rays (2007–present) Los Angeles Dodgers (2001–2006)
Name
Bowling Green Hot Rods (2009–present) Columbus Catfish (2004–2008) South Georgia Waves (2002–2003) Wilmington Waves (2001)
Colors
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Ballpark
Bowling Green Ballpark (2009–present) Golden Park (2003–2008) Paul Eames Sports Complex (2002) Brooks Field (2001)
Minor league titles
League titles	1 (2007)
Division titles	2 (2007, 2011)
Owner(s)/Operated by: Art Solomon
Manager: Brady Williams
General Manager: Brad Taylor

The Bowling Green Hot Rods are a minor league baseball team in Bowling Green, Kentucky. They are a Class A team in the Midwest League, and have been a farm team of the Tampa Bay Rays since September 29, 2006. The team began playing at Bowling Green Ballpark in 2009, replacing the Columbus Catfish.

The "Hot Rods" name refers to the connections that Bowling Green has to the automotive and racing industries such the National Corvette Museum, Holley Carburetor, Beech Bend Raceway and the Bowling Green Assembly Plant, which is the only location in the world that produces General Motors' Chevrolet Corvette.

History

The Hot Rods began life as the Wilmington Waves, one of two South Atlantic League expansion teams for the 2001 season. However, the Waves' stay at Brooks Field in Wilmington, North Carolina lasted for a mere single season. The Waves took on the "South Georgia" moniker when the team was moved to the Paul Eames Sports Complex in Albany, Georgia for the 2002 season. The team retained the South Georgia Waves name when it again moved to Golden Park in Columbus, Georgia just before the 2003 campaign. One year later, in 2004, the franchise would change names and became the Columbus Catfish.

In April 2008, the team moved the team to Bowling Green for the 2009 season under the new nickname "Hot Rods."

In 2010, the Hot Rods and the Lake County Captains moved from the South Atlantic League to the Midwest League, a plan meant to alleviate travel expenses associated with routine road trips as well as player movement within the teams' respective major/minor league systems.

The Hot Rods have been widely recognized for their creative and fun promotional efforts. In 2009, the team's What Could've Been Night was named Promotion of the Year by MiLB.com. In 2010, Hot Rods Assistant General Manager Greg Coleman was honored as Marketer of the Year by the Professional Marketing Association.

Roster

Bowling Green Hot Rods roster
Players				Coaches/Other
Pitchers 34 Jeff Ames 20 Sean Bierman -- Charlie Cononie ‡ 14 Shay Crawford 15 Dylan Floro  8 Ryan Garton 17 Taylor Guerrieri 29 Brandon Hendeson  2 Marcus Jensen 36 Reinaldo Lopez 41 Jose Molina 33 Eduar Quinonez 13 Nick Sawyer -- Trevor Shull 11 Blake Snell		Catchers 21 Luke Maile 10 Justin O'Conner  9 Geoff Rowan Infielders -- Ryan Brett ‡  6 Thomas Coyle  3 Ryan Dunn  5 Tyler Goeddel  4 Ben Kline 30 Patrick Leonard 16 Leonardo Reginatto Outfielders  7 Marty Ganitt 24 Joey Rickard -- Joshua Sale ‡  1 Andrew Toles		Manager 22 Jared Sandberg Coaches 12 Manny Castillo (hitting) 39 Kyle Snyder (pitching) 7-day disabled list * On Tampa Bay Rays 40-man roster ∞ Reserve list § Suspended list ‡ Restricted list # Rehab assignment Roster updated April 5, 2013 Transactions → More MiLB rosters → Tampa Bay Rays minor league players

External links

• Bowling Green Hot Rods