Hot Rods center fielder Emilio Gustave hits a single Monday, September 3, 2018, during the Hot Rods' 4-0 win over the Dayton Dragons at Bowling Green Ballpark. (Bac Totrong/photo@bgdailynews.com)

After the most successful regular season in franchise history, the Bowling Green Hot Rods look to add a little postseason history when the Midwest League playoffs begin against Lansing (Mich.) in Game 1 of a three-game series at 6:05 p.m. CDT on Wednesday.

Bowling Green manager Craig Albernaz said he’s excited to see what his team can do in the postseason.

“Just like any sport, you want to get in the tournament,” Albernaz said. “You want to have a chance. We are in the tournament and we have a chance. It’s kind of crazy to think about and say, but the hard work is over. Going through the grind of a 140-game season, that is hard. Getting to the playoffs and playing competitive ball in September, especially in the minor leagues, this is the fun part.

“I’m excited for these guys to go out and have fun and go out there and play.”

Bowling Green will be playing in the postseason for the sixth time since 2011, but is still looking to advance past the first round – having gone 1-10 in franchise history in the postseason.

There is reason for optimism that the Hot Rods can buck that history. Bowling Green finished with a franchise-record 90 wins, the most wins in the league this season and won the Midwest League Eastern Division title in both halves of the season. The Hot Rods are the seventh team since 2000 to win both halves. Four of the previous six went on to win the Midwest League championship and only one team failed to at least advance to the championship series.

Bowling Green infielder Zach Rutherford said the postseason is not just a chance to win a championship, but it is a chance for this team to stay together for a little longer.

“We just want to play as long as we can in the playoffs,” Rutherford said. “Whenever you get to play meaningful games in September, it is always fun. Hopefully we can come out and play well the next couple of days and see what happens.”

To get past the first round, Bowling Green will have to best a Lansing team that won 80 games and finished second behind the Hot Rods in both halves. The Hot Rods finished 8-5 against Lansing in the regular season – going 4-3 in Lansing and 4-2 at Bowling Green Ballpark.

Ryan Noda leads an offense that scored the most runs in the Midwest League, although the pitching staff ranked 15th with a 4.18 ERA.

“Lansing is a great ballclub over there,” Rutherford said. “They can swing it. They pitch it pretty well. They do all of the little things well. It will be a fun series – a very competitive series, I would think.”

Albernaz said the two franchises have a lot of respect for each other.

“They have extremely talented players on that team,” Albernaz said. “They play the game hard. They play the game right. They are coached very well. We have a lot of respect for each other. It’s always fun to play against them. It’s always a high-level game.”

After Wednesday’s game in Lansing, the teams will head back to Bowling Green Ballpark for Game 2 at 6:35 p.m. Thursday. If necessary, Game 3 will be at 6:35 p.m. Friday.

“In a two out of three, every game is critical,” Albernaz said. “It’s the nature of the beast. It’s minor league baseball at its best. You have to drive seven and a half hours for one game and then both teams have to turn back around and play the next day after driving seven and a half hours through the night. Every game is critical in that situation. That’s why you have to be on your game. One pitch, one swing can change the whole series.”{&end}