Much like the players who have competed for the Bowling Green Hot Rods (Class-A/Tampa Bay Rays), the managing spot has been one featuring rising names in the Tampa Bay system. The latest to add his name to that list is 34-year old Reinaldo Ruiz, who was named Bowling Green’s fifth manager recently. He spent the past three seasons as the hitting coach with the Princeton Rays (Appalachian League), and succeeds Michael Johns, who was promoted to Advanced-A Port Charlotte (Florida State League). Pitching Coach Bill Moloney, Coach Dan DeMent and Athletic Trainer Nick Flynn return after serving in those roles for the Hot Rods in 2014.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Reinaldo and his family to Southcentral Kentucky,” said Hot Rods Chief Operating Officer and General Manage rAdam Nuse. “He arrives with great praise across the Tampa Bay Rays organization. We’re also excited to welcome back Dan DeMent and Bill Moloney, who both did a tremendous job last season with the Hot Rods.”
Ruiz arrives in Bowling Green with an impressive resume. At just 34, he will be one of the youngest managers in affiliated baseball this season. He spent the past three seasons as the hitting coach in Princeton, helping oversee league-best 40 wins and a berth in the Appalachian League playoffs last season. Prior to his time with Princeton, Ruiz was the hitting coach for short-season Hudson Valley in 2011, and a coach for the Gulf Coast League Rays in 2009.
“I am very excited and very happy that I have been promoted to manager of the Bowling Green Hot Rods,” said Ruiz of his new post. “It’s a new challenge in my coaching career, but I am looking forward to that challenge. We are going to give our 100% to help develop the players that go through BG, to have a competitive team, and bring excitement to all the fans this year.”
Signed to a professional contract by the Houston Astros organization, Ruiz began his stateside playing career in Martinsville Appalachian League) in 2001. That same season, he was promoted to another affiliated club in the state of Kentucky, the Lexington Legends. He would go on to play a total of 32 games with Lexington during the 2001 and 2002 seasons. Ruiz would then spend a total of three seasons with Advanced-A Salem (Carolina League) in the Astros system before retiring from his playing career.
The 2015 season will mark Moloney’s third in Bowling Green. He’s been with the Rays organization since 2008, having tutored pitchers for Port Charlotte and Double-A Montgomery in addition to the Hot Rods. In 2014 Moloney led a staff that posted a respectable 3.69 earned run average. He helped prospects to numerous mid-season promotions, most notably starters Blake Snell and Ryne Stanek, and closer Colton Reavis. Moloney enjoyed a well-decorated playing career, spending parts of three seasons at the Triple-A level with the legendary Pawtucket Red Sox.
DeMent returns for his second season as coach with the Hot Rods. He mentored a young offense in 2014 that finished fourth in the Midwest League in batting average despite losing key pieces of the lineup throughout the campaign. Hot Rods hitters finished with a .260 average and 337 extra-base hits. DeMent was previously the hitting coach at Hudson Valley during the 2012 and ’13 seasons. DeMent reached the Triple-A level as a player, and was originally signed by the Rays in 2000.
Flynn was awarded the 2014 Midwest League Trainer of the Year, and he will defend his crown as he begins his second season with the HotRods. The 2015 campaign will mark Flynn's sixth in professional baseball, five of those years have been with the Tampa Bay organization. Flynn interned with the Toronto Blue Jays during the 2009 season. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of South Florida, and his master's degree from Georgia State.
The Hot Rods will play a historic exhibition game at Bowling Green Ballpark on Tuesday, April 7. The Western Kentucky University baseball team will square off against the Hot Rods in a nine-inning contest using Minor League Baseball rules. It will serve as a final tune-up for Bowling Green before beginning Midwest League play on Thursday, April 9 on the road against the South Bend Cubs. Opening Night at Bowling Green Ballpark is set for Saturday, April 18, when the Hot Rods will entertain the Lake County Captains (Cleveland Indians) in the first regular season home game. Season-ticket packages are available now, and they’re loaded with savings and benefits. For more information, visit BGHotRods.com, call 270-901-2121, or stop by the Bowling Green Ballpark office.