Rays, Hot Rods Unveil 2021 Opening Day Roster
BOWLING GREEN, KENTUCKY – The Bowling Green Hot Rods, in conjunction with the Tampa Bay Rays, are excited to unveil the club’s 2021 opening day roster. Bowling Green returns 14 players from past rosters and welcomes two top prospects ahead of the team’s season opener. Blake Hunt joins the Hot
BOWLING GREEN, KENTUCKY – The Bowling Green Hot Rods, in conjunction with the Tampa Bay Rays, are excited to unveil the club’s 2021 opening day roster. Bowling Green returns 14 players from past rosters and welcomes two top prospects ahead of the team’s season opener.
Blake Hunt joins the Hot Rods after spending three seasons in the San Diego Padres system. The catcher is MLB Pipeline’s #18 prospect in Tampa’s system and was brought over in the mega deal that saw former Hot Rods pitcher and Hot Rods Hall of Famer Blake Snell go to San Diego. The right-handed hitter was the 69thoverall pick of the 2017 draft by the Padres.
Hunt is joined by another newcomer to the Rays system in Pedro Martinez. Originally from Venezuela, the shortstop is coming off an impressive 2019 season that saw him bat .311 between the Arizona League Cubs and short-season Eugene. A switch-hitter, the 20-year-old is MLB Pipeline’s 30th-ranked Tampa prospect.
Bowling Green will also welcome back 14 returning players for the 2021 seasons thanks to the club’s promotion to High-A. Thirteen of those players were on the Hot Rods in 2019, including outfielder Grant Witherspoon and catcher Roberto Alvarez who were Midwest League All-Stars that season. Pitchers Chris Gau, Miller Hogan, Chris Muller, Cristofer Ogando, and Zack Trageton also return from 2019 (while earning a promotion). Mikey York will return to Bowling Green after stints with the club in 2017 and 2018, as well.
Erik Ostberg rounds out the catcher’s slot on the roster in his return to Bowling Green Ballpark and is joined by fellow position players Jonathan Aranda, Connor Hollis, Osmy Gregorio, and Jordan Qsar. Ruben Cardenas will be in BG to start 2021 after an impressive showing between the Lake County Captains and Hot Rods in 2019. In fact, Cardenas was traded to the Rays while Lake County was at Bowling Green Ballpark, prompting the outfielder to walk next door to his new home clubhouse.
Niko Hulsizer completes the Hot Rods outfield and promises to bring the thunder with him. The Dodgers’ 18th round pick of 2018 has already hit 30 home runs in his two seasons of MiLB experience, including 21 in 2019 between four clubs with 15 of those long balls coming for Great Lakes. He was also a Midwest League All-Star for the Loons.
Newcomers are plenty in this iteration of an opening day roster, too. Michael Mercado was the Rays’ 2ndround pick of the 2017 draft and is returning after not pitching in 2019 due to injury. The righty was Baseball America’s 13th-best Rays prospect in 2018.
The roster is flexible, as well, this season. Tanner Dodson, the 71stoverall pick of the 2018 draft, will be the second-ever two-way player in Hot Rods history. He’ll join more newcomers on the pitching staff in Peyton Battenfield (RHP), Carlos Garcia (RHP), Joseph La Sorsa (LHP), Jacob Lopez (LHP), Evan McKendry (RHP), Jayden Murray (RHP), Ezequiel Zabaleta (RHP).
Offensively the Hot Rods are a mix of experienced talent and young promise. While Martinez is just 20 years old, he’s joined on the infield by Evan Edwards and Jacson McGowan who were both drafted out of college.
The complete roster can be viewed here.
While subject to change, the opening day roster includes 27 active players. The pitching staff has 13 right-handers and two southpaws, while manager Jeff Smith has five left-handed hitters, eight righties, and a switch hitter to construct his lineup. Muller and La Sorsa will be the tallest players on the team at 6’5”, while Ostberg, Aranda, and Hollis all measure at 5’10”, the shortest on the club.
The Hot Rods open their 2021 season on the road with a six-game series in Greenville, South Carolina against the Greenville Drive at Fluor Field on Tuesday, May 4th. Fans can catch all the action with Shawn Murnin, the Voice of the Hot Rods, on WBGN 94.5 FM and 1340 AM in Bowling Green or globally at https://www.milb.com/bowling-green/fans/audio-listen-live.
The Hot Rods finally return to Bowling Green Ballpark for the 2021 home opener on May 11thfor a six-game homestand against the Asheville Tourists. Individual tickets for May and June are still available at the team box office, bghotrods.com, or calling 270-901-2121. The home opener homestand will be packed with special theme nights, Hospital Appreciation Week, giveaways, and so much more!
###
*Hot Rods Baseball is presented by MedCenter Health *
Phillies' Moore, Fausnaught join MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”