Savannah Bananas Explained

Savannah Bananas
Location:Savannah, Georgia
Stadium:Grayson Stadium
Founded:2016
League Champs:3 (2016, 2021, 2022)
Former Leagues:Coastal Plain League (2016–2022)
Colors:Navy blue, green, yellow, and white
Mascot:Split
Owner:Fans First Entertainment (Jesse & Emily Cole)
Coach:Reginald Horton, Adam Virant
Manager:Tyler Gillum

The Savannah Bananas is an exhibition barnstorming baseball team based in Savannah, Georgia.[1] The team was founded in 2016 and has played at Grayson Stadium since its inaugural season. Until 2022, the Bananas competed as a collegiate summer baseball team in the Coastal Plain League's (CPL) West division,[2] where they won three Petitt Cup championships (2016, 2021, and 2022). However, after the growth of their alternate "Banana Ball" format, the team transitioned entirely to barnstorming exhibitions against their partner touring teams, the Party Animals, the Firefighters, and other "challenger" professional teams, similar to the decades-long format of basketball's Harlem Globetrotters and their partner touring team, the Washington Generals.[3] The team has been featured by ESPN, The Wall Street Journal, CNN 10, and Sports Illustrated because of its sports entertainment and viral videos.[4] [5]

History

Following the departure of the South Atlantic League's Savannah Sand Gnats for Columbia, South Carolina, on September 22, 2015, the Coastal Plain League (CPL) announced Savannah as its newest team to begin play for 2016. On February 25, following a name-the-team contest, the Bananas name, logo and colors were officially revealed by the team.[6] [7]

In 2016, the Bananas ended their inaugural season as the first seed in the CPL West Division, earning home-field advantage for the first two games of the playoffs. In game one, the Bananas beat the Asheboro Copperheads, 3–2, with the first walk-off in franchise history. The Bananas then defeated the Forest City Owls, 2–0, to win the CPL West Division championship and advance to the Petitt Cup Championship. Game one of the championship was played at Grayson Stadium, where the Bananas defeated the Peninsula Pilots, 8–4. The team traveled to Hampton, Virginia, where the Pilots' 4–3 win in game two forced an all-or-nothing game three. The Bananas took home the Petitt Cup after a 9–7 win in game three.[8] The Bananas were named the league's organization of the year in both 2016 and 2017.

Following the 2022 summer league season, the Bananas announced they were folding their collegiate amateur team and only playing "Banana Ball". In August that year, ESPN+ released a miniseries about the team called Bananaland.[9] [10], the team has over six million followers on TikTok, more than any MLB team.

In 2023, Jocelyn Alo became the first woman to play for the Bananas, getting an at bat in one of their games. In 2024, the team announced that Alo had become the first female member of the Bananas, and signed a one-month contract.[11]

Banana Ball world tours

2021

The Bananas announced their first "world tour" called the One City World Tour, where they traveled to Mobile, Alabama, and sold out both nights in Hank Aaron Stadium, with a combined crowd of over 7,000 fans.[12]

2022

The Bananas added six more cities across four different states to the tour, creating a 14-game "world tour" in which all games were sellouts.[13] While the majority of Banana Ball games feature the Bananas versus the rival Party Animals (similar to the relationship between the Harlem Globetrotters and the Washington Generals), the Bananas introduced a "Challenger Series" in which they play against a different opponent. The first such series was played May 5–6 against the Kansas City Monarchs of the American Association of Professional Baseball and saw each team win one game.[14]

2023

The "world tour" was expanded to over 80 games,[15] with the team implementing their new exhibition-only status. The tour was scheduled to start at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches in Florida on February 17 and end seven months later at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, New York.[16] The tour also includes numerous challenger games against teams such as the Charleston Dirty Birds, Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, Florence Y'alls, The MLB Players Alumni Association, and a rematch with the Kansas City Monarchs. Additionally, the Bananas played their first international opponent, the Aussie Drop Bears, a team from Australia featuring professional and collegiate players.[17]

2024

The "world tour" kicked off its 2024 season at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida on February 8th and is scheduled to end eight months later at LoanDepot Park in Miami, followed by a trip on a cruise ship to The Bahamas called "Bananaland at Sea".[18] The tour also included 5 other MLB ballparks: Nationals Park, Washington D.C.; Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas; Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts; Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio.[19] Two games aired live on ESPN from Sahlen Field in Buffalo, New York.[20]

Banana Ball teams

Bananas Premier/Pro Team

The 2021 exhibition series in Mobile was the debut of what was then called the Premier Team, the exhibition Banana Ball team under the Bananas umbrella to differentiate from the collegiate team that played in the CPL. This team was a mix of both alumni of the CPL squad and new hires from independent leagues, colleges and Minor League Baseball. Following the disbandment of the CPL team in 2022, the Premier Team became the basis of the barnstorming and exhibition Bananas team, known by their all-yellow uniforms carried on from the former CPL team or a yellow and white combination uniform. They are the flagship team of the wider organization.

In 2024 the yellow uniform set expanded to include a pinstriped variant and a version paying homage to the CPL era uniform.

The Party Animals

See main article: Savannah Party Animals. During the 2020 shortened Bananas CPL season, the organization debuted what would be the second of the current three teams during the test Banana Ball games at home – the Party Animals, known by their black or pink uniforms or a bicolor pink & black or black and pink uniform during games. Previously, the test Banana Ball games were played as scrimmage games of the CPL Bananas pre-season. The creation of the team gave the Bananas a true home or away opponent in its exhibition gamedays during most of the season. In 2024, the Party Animals were fleshed out as a more permanent team with its own slate of games outside of the Bananas.

The Firefighters

Debuting on October 5, 2023, as part of the 2024 season launch night, the Firefighters wear bright red or dark black uniforms and firefighter helmets.[21]

The Visitors

Introduced in June 2024, the Visitors have served as opponents for the Party Animals or Bananas in games when the other team is facing the Firefighters.[22] The Visitors wear generic gray uniforms with blue numbering (with no names in the back of jerseys) and constitute the minor league training wing of the Bananas organization.

Banana Ball rules

The Savannah Bananas have deviated from standard baseball rules in creating the "banana ball" format.[23] This format has been used since June 2020 at home and for most touring exhibition games. Refinements have been made over time—the challenge rule was introduced in 2023. The current "banana ball" rules are, as amended:[24]

  1. Games are won by points, instead of runs: the team that scores the most runs in an inning gets one point, except in the final inning when every run counts as one point. The final inning may be earlier than the ninth inning, due to the time limit noted below. When the home team has scored enough runs to "win" any inning other than the final inning, the inning immediately ends.
  2. There is a "two-hour" time limit; no new inning may start after 1 hour and 50 minutes have elapsed. Once an inning starts, it is played to completion.
  3. Batters cannot step out of the batters box. Doing so results in an automatic strike.
  4. Batters cannot bunt. Doing so results in an automatic ejection.
  5. Batters can attempt to steal first base at any point during their at bat, including on passed balls or wild pitches.
  6. Walks are called "sprints". After ball four, the batter is allowed to advance as far around the bases as he can while the ball is sequentially thrown to all of the fielders other than the pitcher, starting with the catcher. The ball remains dead, with the batter-runner not liable to be put out, until the four infielders and three outfielders have each touched the ball. This often results in the batter-runner advancing to second base on the sprint.
  7. No mound visits are allowed.
  8. Foul balls caught by fans are counted as outs.[25]
  9. Ties are broken by a "showdown tiebreaker", an abbreviated extra innings format. Each team's half-inning during the showdown ends with any out or with any run scored by the batter—if the batter puts the ball in play, he must attempt to score. A batter who draws a walk advances to second base, with the hitting team allowed to send a new batter to the plate. At any point during the showdown, a home run hit over the outfield wall immediately ends the game in favor of the batting team. If the game is still tied after a showdown round, another showdown round is played, until there is a winner. Scenarios differ by showdown round: In showdown round 1, each team selects a pitcher and hitter to face off, with the defense fielding only their pitcher, catcher, and a single fielder. In showdown round 2, the fielder is eliminated. In showdown round 3 (and later), the fielder returns, but each half-inning starts with the bases loaded, and each run scored counts as a point.
  10. Each team is allowed to challenge certain calls by the umpires: whether a ball was fair or foul, whether or not a runner was tagged out (at home plate or on the basepaths), and whether a ball was caught or not. A team retains its right to challenge until they lose a challenge, after which they may not challenge any calls for the remainder of the game. The fans can also challenge one play per game, as determined by a fan who is chosen to initiate the challenge. Challenged plays are reviewed by the broadcast team, who relay their ruling to the umpire.
  11. "The Golden Batter Rule" – One time in a game, a team may send any hitter in the lineup to bat in any spot. The goal of this rule is so a team can have their best hitter hit when the game is on the line.

Other non-standard baseball activities are sometimes used for entertainment purposes. For example, an August 2023 game featured an at bat where the pitcher and batter played rock paper scissors before each pitch: each time the pitcher won, the batter had to bat from the opposite side of home plate as he normally would, and each time the batter won, the pitcher needed to announce what type of pitch he was about to throw. Other entertainment includes elaborate walk-ups starting from the stands, in-game dances, and run celebrations.

Attendance

In their inaugural 2016 season, the Savannah Bananas ranked second in average attendance among 160 summer collegiate teams, as reported by Ballpark Digest.[26] They averaged 3,659 fans per game across 22 regular season home games, with 17 sellouts, totaling 80,504 fans and breaking the Coastal Plain League single-season attendance record. Including postseason games, they hosted 91,004 fans with 18 total sellouts. This also set a record for the highest average attendance in the history of Grayson Stadium.

The Bananas recorded over 500,000 total fans in attendance on their Banana Ball World Tour in 2023.[27] The 2023 Banana Ball World Tour had 87 games in 33 different cities across the country.

Television coverage

Banana Ball made its national television debut in 2022 through a 6 game agreement with ESPN. One game aired on ESPN2, with the remaining games on ESPN+.[28] The agreement returned in 2023 with 1 game on ESPN2 and two others on ESPN+.[29]

The Bananas significantly expanded its television coverage for the 2024 season. In April 2024, the Bananas announced that 19 games would air on Stadium and Bally Live.[30] In July 2024, the Bananas announced a 5 game agreement with ESPN. For the first time, three games will air on ESPN with two others airing on ESPN2 as part of the annual ESPN8 The Ocho event.[31] [32] In August 2024, the Bananas announced an agreement with TNT Sports to exclusively air 5 games on TruTV.[33]

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Dominitz . Nathan . Savannah Bananas fold collegiate team, focus on taking Banana Ball nationwide . Savannah Morning News . 24 August 2022 . August 21, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230821002055/https://www.savannahnow.com/story/sports/minors/savannah-bananas/2022/08/24/savannah-bananas-fold-cpl-team-focus-banana-ball-travel/7884044001/ . live .
  2. Web site: Savannah Bananas announce they will play Banana Ball year round . wtoc.com . August 24, 2022 . 24 August 2022 . en . August 23, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230823022848/https://www.wtoc.com/2022/08/24/savannah-bananas-announce-they-will-play-banana-ball-year-round/ . live .
  3. Web site: Palmer . Joseph . 'More than baseball': how the Savannah Bananas became the greatest show in sports . The Guardian . 26 May 2023 . 26 May 2023 . September 13, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230913030937/https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2023/may/26/savannah-bananas-baseball-team-tiktok-banana-ball . live .
  4. News: Heupel . Shannon . Going Bananas! Two wild nights of 'the greatest show in baseball' coming to Montgomery . 20 March 2022 . . 17 March 2022 . August 23, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230823022850/https://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/entertainment/2022/03/17/savannah-bananas-bringing-greatest-show-baseball-montgomery/7081610001/ . live .
  5. Inside Taiwan’s secretive microchip factory that powers the world economy . en . 2024-04-01 . www.youtube.com.
  6. Web site: Savannah Baseball Announces Team Name and Unveils Logo . . February 25, 2016 . February 25, 2016 . September 2, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170902012628/http://www.coastalplain.com/press/savannah_baseball_announces_team_name_and_unveils_logo/ . live .
  7. Web site: Savannah's new baseball team: The Bananas . . SavannahNow.com . February 25, 2016 . February 25, 2016 . May 15, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160515191621/http://savannahnow.com/sports/2016-02-25/savannahs-new-baseball-team-bananas . live .
  8. Web site: Bananas Win CPL Championship . The Savannah Bananas . August 17, 2016 . August 23, 2016 . August 23, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230823022851/https://thesavannahbananas.com/bananas-win-cpl-championship/ . live .
  9. Web site: Williams . Dave . New series 'Bananaland' to debut Friday . WJCL . 24 August 2022 . en . 18 August 2022 . August 24, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230824000926/https://www.wjcl.com/article/new-series-bananaland-to-debut-friday/40934499 . live .
  10. Web site: Luter . Carianne . Bananaland: Savannah Bananas get original series on ESPN+ . WJXT . 24 August 2022 . en . 19 August 2022 . August 23, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230823022847/https://www.news4jax.com/features/2022/08/19/bananaland-savannah-bananas-get-original-series-on-espn/ . live .
  11. Web site: Former OU softball star Jocelyn Alo becomes first woman to sign with Savannah Bananas baseball team. Mason Young Tulsa. World. April 26, 2024. Tulsa World.
  12. Web site: 2021-03-29 . Savannah Bananas bring their 'One City World Tour' to Mobile . 2023-06-29 . WKRG News 5 . en-US . June 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629172242/https://www.wkrg.com/sports/wkrg-sports-overtime/savannah-bananas-bring-their-one-city-world-tour-to-mobile/ . live .
  13. Web site: 2021-10-19 . Savannah Bananas World Tour sites unveiled Ballpark Digest . 2023-06-29 . en-US . June 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629173744/https://ballparkdigest.com/2021/10/19/savannah-bananas-world-tour-sites-unveiled/ . live .
  14. Web site: 2022-05-09 . Savannah Bananas deliver a dance party to Legends Field . 2023-06-29 . The Pitch . limited . en-US . June 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629193110/https://www.thepitchkc.com/savannah-bananas-deliver-a-dance-party-to-legends-field/ . live .
  15. Web site: 2023 Banana Ball World Tour Schedule . thesavannahbananas.com . August 14, 2023 . August 15, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230815025227/https://thesavannahbananas.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2023-Final-Schedule-scaled.jpg . live .
  16. Web site: 2023-03-01 . Savannah Bananas 2023 tour: Schedule, tickets and more to know about baseball's most entertaining team . 2023-06-29 . www.sportingnews.com . en-us . June 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230629193105/https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/news/savannah-bananas-schedule-tickets-2023-baseball/we46qflx4zt7kecktms94y3x . live .
  17. News: Savannah Bananas welcome Aussie Drop Bears in first-ever International Challenger . Amy . Zimmer . . June 9, 2023 . August 14, 2023 . August 23, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230823022855/https://www.wjcl.com/article/savannah-bananas-welcome-aussie-drop-bears-in-first-ever-international-challenger/44134885 . live .
  18. Web site: Stroh-Page . Caitlyn . Savannah Bananas are taking 'Banana Ball' to the sea. What to know about the cruise . 2024-06-20 . Savannah Morning News . en-US.
  19. Web site: Stroh-Page . Caitlyn . MLB parks, a third team — and a cruise! What's coming for the 2024 Savannah Bananas World Tour . 2024-06-20 . Savannah Morning News . en-US.
  20. Web site: Dorsch . Eric . 2 upcoming Savannah Bananas games to air on ESPN . WSAV-TV . July 4, 2024 . July 6, 2024.
  21. Web site: Benedetto . Matt . Savannah Bananas bringing 2024 World Tour to Philadelphia . ABC 27 WHTM . October 6, 2023 . 1 November 2023 . November 1, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231101174918/https://www.abc27.com/sports/savannah-bananas-bringing-2024-world-tour-to-philadelphia/ . live .
  22. Web site: Williams . Dave . 2024-06-11 . Savannah Bananas rival the Party Animals unveil their mascot: Meet 'Pharty' . 2024-06-15 . WJCL . en.
  23. News: Fans catching foul balls for outs? No walks allowed? Rules for this baseball team are bananas . . April 12, 2021 . August 20, 2022 . August 23, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230823022850/https://www.ksat.com/sports/2021/04/12/fans-catching-foul-balls-for-outs-no-walks-allowed-rules-for-this-baseball-team-are-bananas/ . live .
  24. Web site: Banana Ball . The Savannah Bananas . August 15, 2023 . September 21, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230921020045/https://thesavannahbananas.com/bananaball/ . live .
  25. Web site: Gartland . Dan . 2023-07-12 . A Baseball Game Ended on an Awesome Play by a Fan and Everybody Loved it . 2024-06-20 . Sports Illustrated . en-us.
  26. Web site: Reichard . Kevin . 2016-08-15 . 2016 Summer Collegiate Attendance by Average . 2024-07-20 . Ballpark Digest . en-US.
  27. Web site: Savannah Bananas Break All the Rules to Hit the Mainstream . September 24, 2023 . November 8, 2023 . November 8, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231108155504/https://frontofficesports.com/savannah-bananas-break-all-the-rules-to-hit-the-mainstream/ . live .
  28. Web site: On ESPN2, ESPN+ This Friday: Premiere of 'Bananaland' Original Series, Live 'Banana Ball' Games . ESPN Pressroom. August 15, 2022 . August 6, 2024 .
  29. Web site: Más Ocho: ESPN’s Biggest, Boldest Edition of "ESPN8: The Ocho" Returns with 43 Straight Hours of Seldom-Seen Sports August 3-5 . ESPN Pressroom. July 27, 2023 . August 6, 2024 .
  30. Web site: Dorsch . Eric . April 10, 2024 . Banana Ball games now available to stream on Stadium and Bally Live . WSAV . May 3, 2024 . en-US.
  31. Web site: Dorsch. Eric. 2 upcoming Savannah Bananas games to air on ESPN . WSAV. July 4, 2024 . August 6, 2024 .
  32. Web site: Ocho Years of the Ocho! ESPN8: The Ocho Returns as the Number One Destination for Seldom-Seen Sports . ESPN Pressroom. July 2024 . August 6, 2024 .
  33. Web site: truTV to Exclusively Televise Five Friday Night Savannah Bananas Games, Starting Aug. 16 . Warner Bros Discovery. August 6, 2024 . August 6, 2024 .

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