Bowling Green Park, home of the Bowling Green Hot Rods, is located in downtown Bowling Green, Kentucky. The Hot Rods are the Low A affiliate of the Tampa Rays in the Midwest. During a recent family vacation to Mammoth Cave National Park, I set aside a day to watch a minor league game at Bowling Green Park. 

On the night that I visited, the Hot Rods were playing the Great Lake Loons. I could write a long winded post about how ground-breaking this stadium is, but that would be stretching the truth somewhat. The exterior is fairly bland and the backdrop is boring inside the stadium. The weather that night was miserable. My camera lens fogged up due to the humidity and I spent $15.00 on water before the first pitch. I never did find that signature ballpark food item that I am always seeking.

The stadium's greatest asset is its location. It fits very nice into its downtown surroundings and there doesn't seem to be a bad seat. Management has done a great job keeping up the appearance of the stadium, 

For a Low A stadium, autographs can be difficult to get. It was nice that both teams enter and exit the field from the outfield, but if you do not have someone helping you, you are going to miss a lot of players on both teams. There is zero access to the visiting teams bullpen and once the players are in their dugout, they are really going to have to make an effort to accommodate your request.

The night I went was a Firework Night and I asked Keon Wong if he could sign after the game. He explained to me on fireworks night all of  the players have to leave the stadium before the fireworks start or they are stuck until the firework display truck leaves, which can be a more than an hour later. After the game, the Hot Rod players literally galloped back to their locker room and some of the Loons players chose to stay in the dugout until after the fireworks and I got their autographs there.

I'm thinking about a return trip next year to this ballpark and a visit to a different cave system.