The Bowling Green Hot Rods will see a familiar foe in Fort Wayne (Ind.) when they open the Midwest League playoffs at Bowling Green Ballpark at 6:35 p.m. on Wednesday.

It will be Bowling Green’s fifth playoff appearance and the third time it will face Fort Wayne in the best-of-three opening round. Fort Wayne swept the Hot Rods in the previous two playoff meetings in 2011 and 2013, but there is cause for optimism for a Bowling Green team still looking for its first postseason series win.

Bowling Green finished 10-8 against Fort Wayne this season, with the Hot Rods’ pitching staff holding the TinCaps to a .222 team batting average.

That pitching staff won’t have to face one of Fort Wayne’s top prospects, infielder Fernando Tatis Jr., who was promoted to Double A San Antonio last month.

“For our pitching staff it is going to be good that Tatis is not in the lineup,” Bowling Green manager Reinaldo Ruiz said. “He is a really legit prospect. He played really well against us. Now that he is not going to be on that team, it is going to be huge for us.”

The Hot Rods also come in with five straight wins – turning around a 10-game tailspin that saw Bowling Green’s playoff clincher in jeopardy until the final weekend.

“You never want to go through something like that, but at the same time it is baseball and things like that happen,” Bowling Green infielder Miles Mastrobuoni said. “I’m glad we didn’t take that 10-game losing streak into the playoffs. We went out on a high note to end this thing and we’ve got a good feeling going into the playoffs.”

There won’t be much chance for struggles with a best-of-three series. Mastrobuoni said instead of focusing on being in the postseason, he thinks it best to take the same approach as the regular season.

“What I think we need to do is treat it like another game,” Mastrobuoni said. “The minute you start trying to press and grabbing the bat super hard, things probably won’t go your way. If we just go into the games taking one at-bat at a time, one pitch at a time, I think we will come out on top.”

Bowling Green will look to right-hander Mikey York (1-1, 1.06) in the opener. York has been stellar in three starts since joining the Hot Rods, allowing two earned runs in 17 innings of work. York hasn’t faced Fort Wayne this season.

Right-hander Adrian Navas (12-9, 4.73) is slated to start game two. Navas went 8-3 with a 2.76 ERA in the second half, 4-1 with six earned runs allowed in six starts since Aug. 1. He has struggled against Fort Wayne, going 1-2 with a 10.54 ERA in four appearances. Navas did get the win in his last start against the TinCaps on Aug. 13, allowing one run in 5 2/3 innings.

“I think that is a good way to start the playoffs,” Ruiz said. “York has done a really good job since we got him. Navas in the second half was unbelievable. I think those two guys give us a good chance.”

Game two, and a potential game three, will played in Fort Wayne on Thursday and Friday. With Wednesday’s game the only chance at home this series, Mastrobuoni said it is imperative to get off to a good start and go back to Fort Wayne up 1-0.

“Playing two at their place is tough,” Mastrobuoni said. “They pack their house. They play well at home. You definitely want to start this on a high note and put their backs against the wall.”{&end}