The Bowling Green Hot Rods baseball team has been sold to Manhattan Capital Sports Acquisition, headed by Stuart Katzoff, the Hot Rods announced today.

The Hot Rods’ new ownership group will assume the 15 years remaining on the 20-year lease with Bowling Green Ballpark. The team will remain in the Midwest League and will continue to be affiliated with the Tampa Bay Rays.

Katzoff, along with Indiana Pacers owner Herb Simon and his father, Jerry Katzoff, also owns the Triple-A Reno Aces of the Pacific Coast League.

As founder and president of the private investment group Manhattan Capital LLC, Stuart Katzoff has also developed a multimillion-dollar entertainment district near Aces Ballpark. The Aces have drawn more than two million fans since the club’s inception in 2009, according to a news release.

According to Forbes.com, the Reno Aces are tied for 13th in the outlet’s ranking of Minor League Baseball’s Most Valuable Teams.

The Katzoffs also own 14 Il Mulino restaurants, one of which will open soon in Nashville.

“We and our partners are very excited about this great opportunity to continue in the revitalization of downtown Bowling Green by improving on the success of the Hot Rods,” Stuart Katzoff said in a statement. 

The franchise was purchased from New England native Art Solomon, who also owns the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, a Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Solomon headed a group that bought the Columbus (Ga.) Catfish before the 2008 season and later announced that he would move the franchise to Bowling Green.

“This is an announcement we make with extremely mixed feelings and a heavy heart,” Solomon said in a statement. “The people in this region have been so welcoming to us since we arrived in the fall of 2008, and without them we would not be where we are today. Stuart Katzoff is an outstanding, successful owner, and I have no doubt that this new era for the Hot Rods will mean great things for downtown Bowling Green and the surrounding region.”

In five seasons, the Hot Rods have drawn more than one million fans to Bowling Green Ballpark.

The ballpark, which began construction nine months before the team’s first game, has become an integral part in the redevelopment of downtown Bowling Green. The facility has hosted more than 20 additional community events each year.

— Follow Bowling Green Hot Rods writer Micheal Compton on Twitter at twitter.com/mcompton428 or visit bgdailynews.com.