Tag: Savannah

Cole calls it “Banana Ball 3.0″ and said the goal is to refine the game “to be entertaining on every pitch.” After several years of experimentation, the Bananas will apply lessons learned to make every moment a “must watch,” Cole said.

“It’s a ‘can’t take my eyes off the show’ approach to get ready to go into the league in 2026,” he said.

The Bananas sold out all 84 games on their schedule last year, playing before more than 1 million fans nationwide.

ExploreReady to go Bananas? A guide to baseball, Savannah Bananas style

The Bananas’ schedule is designed for maximum exposure. The multigame series in Major League parks mean the Bananas are expected to play before 60,000 to 100,000 spectators in those markets. Games at football stadiums in Tampa, Florida; Nashville, Tennessee; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Clemson, South Carolina are meant to attract large crowds.

“Our ticket waitlist is over 3 million names long,” Cole said. “We’re confident in what we are seeing in terms of demand.”

The Bananas will also play 30 home games at Savannah’s 5,000-seat Grayson Stadium this year, starting with a three-game series Feb. 21-23.

The Truist Park series in Atlanta is March 29-30 after the team played at Gwinnett’s Coolray Field last year.

Here’s what else you need to know ahead of the Bananas’ new season.

ExploreTruist Park to go bananas in 2025 as Savannah Bananas return to Atlanta

Who are the Bananas?

Part baseball game, part dance troupe floorshow, part WWE event, the Bananas’ motto is “the greatest show in sports.” The team is often compared to basketball icons the Harlem Globetrotters. Cole draws inspiration from P.T. Barnum, of Barnum and Bailey Circus fame, and baseball marketing genius Bill Veeck, best known for staging the infamous Disco Demolition night in 1979 at Chicago’s Comiskey Park.

The Bananas started in 2016 as a team in the Coastal Plains League, a summer circuit for college players. They played a traditional form of baseball, limiting on-field zaniness, but put a premium on pregame, postgame and between-innings entertainment.

In 2018, Cole first experimented with Banana Ball, staging test games in secret. After playing Banana Ball exhibition games in 2019 and 2020, Cole formed a barnstorming team for the 2021 season.

The so-called “world tour” was such a success that Cole folded the college summer league team after the 2022 season and the Bananas became exclusively a traveling squad. They toured minor league, spring training and college ballparks in 2023 before debuting in Major League stadiums last year, selling out venues such as Boston’s Fenway Park and Houston’s Minute Maid Park.

ExploreSavannah Bananas League? Here’s what fans could expect

Who do they play?

Just as basketball’s Globetrotters have a foil in the Washington Generals, the Bananas have regular opponents in the Party Animals and the Firefighters, two other barnstorming teams created by Cole. Later this year, a fourth team, the Texas Tailgaters, joins the ranks and will be the first team other than the Bananas based in a particular region.

Those four teams — the Bananas, Party Animals, Firefighters and Tailgaters — will compete for the Tour Championship at season’s end.

The rosters of all four teams feature former professional and college baseball players as well as specialists, such as stilt walkers, musicians and dancers. The club’s payroll exceeds $1 million.

The Bananas have star power. Former Major League standouts Jonny Gomes, Jake Peavy, Eric Burns, Jonathan Papelbon and Bill “Spaceman” Lee have been regulars in past years, as has Josh Reddick, a Savannah-area native who played 14 years in the big leagues. Roger Clemens and Roy Oswalt came out of retirement to pitch in a game in Houston last year.

Celebrities make cameos as well. Wrestling legend John Cena had an at-bat in a game last year and Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell played — and danced — in a 2023 appearance.

What is Banana Ball?

Pace of play is an issue Major League Baseball has addressed with relative success in recent years, with pitch clocks and batter-related restrictions. Banana Ball rules go farther and condense games to less than two hours.

Mound visits, walks, bunting and stepping out of the batter’s box between pitches is prohibited. Foul balls caught by fans in the stands count as outs.

To encourage close finishes, the games are scored with points rather than runs — the team that scores more runs each inning gets a point. Other rules meant to promote drama throughout the games are officiating challenges and the “golden batter,” which allows a team to send any hitter in the lineup to bat in any spot once per game. Major League Baseball floated the idea of adopting a similar “golden batter” rule during the recent winter meetings.

What makes the Bananas popular?

The Bananas are a car door to car door experience — the entertainment begins from the moment you arrive at the park until the moment you leave. The club puts on a pregame festival, complete with a parade, a marching band, autograph-signing players and two groups of cheerleaders: the “Dad Bod Man-nanas” male squad and the “Nanas” dance team made up of senior-age women.

The creative team behind the Bananas is always innovating, and every pitch is an opportunity for a viral moment. Trick plays, impromptu dance routines, acrobatic fielding and celebrity appearances are the norm between the lines, and the between innings high jinks include crawling baby races and a seventh inning stretch routine set to the tune of Coldplay’s “Yellow.”

Those who go for a beer or the bathroom between innings risk missing a rendition of “Hey Baby,” the 1960s sing-along popularized by Bruce Channel.

Where can I get tickets?

The Bananas are a tough ticket no matter where they play. Tickets for all games are distributed through a lottery system, which is already closed for 2025. Interested buyers can still join the ticket interest list at thesavannahbananas.com.

Ticket resellers such as StubHub do advertise Bananas games but fraudulent tickets have been an issue in previous years. Fake tickets are not honored by the Bananas.