Last week, the Savannah Bananas announced they’ll visit the Orioles’ Camden Yards on Aug. 1 and 2 as part of their 2025 Banana Ball World Tour. For some baseball fans, this sparked immediate excitement. For others, it led to the question: “Who are the Savannah Bananas and why are people so excited about them?”
The Bananas are often described as the baseball version of the Harlem Globetrotters, who are a basketball team that travels the country playing exhibition games designed to entertain fans rather than simulate a traditional basketball game. The Party Animals are the Bananas’ equivalent of the Washington Generals, serving as the Bananas’ opponent for most games. While the Bananas wouldn’t keep it close with the Orioles in an actual baseball game — hold your jokes about Baltimore’s late-season struggles — they provide a form of entertainment uncommon to a traditional baseball game.
Before becoming an entertainment-focused baseball product, the Bananas were members of the Coastal Plain League, a summer collegiate baseball league. They pivoted to only playing “Banana Ball” in 2022, and it’s led to massive popularity. The Bananas have nearly 9 million TikTok followers, which is well more than the New York Yankees, who have 1.4 million.
Viral social media clips of games helped launch the rapid growth of the Bananas, and they’re taking that popularity on the road by visiting major stadiums across the country in 2025.
What’s Banana Ball?
Banana Ball is the Savannah Bananas’ creation, and it turns a baseball game into a two-hour show. While there’s still baseball in every Bananas game, there’s also dancing and costumes, among other unique theatrics. Wearing costumes is unusual for standard baseball games, as teams often wear the same standard jerseys for every game. Well, outside of Seattle’s City Connect jerseys, which actually look like they could be alternate Savannah Bananas jerseys.
Players wear costumes ranging from traditional game day kilts to guys taking at-bats on stilts. While Yankees slugger Aaron Judge looks like a physical specimen at 6-foot-7, it’s not every day fans see a 10-foot player, but that’s the case at Bananas games. Dances take place on the field throughout the game, including players with choreographed walk-out dances before at-bats. Even the game’s umpires often partake in the fun, with them being included in some of the planned dance moves.
Banana Ball games have unique rules such as players getting ejected for bunting. To speed up the game, batters are awarded a strike if they step out of the box during their turn at the plate. Batters can, however, steal first base on any passed ball or wild pitch.
Perhaps most entertaining for fans, if a spectator catches a foul ball, the batter is out. While catching a foul ball is always a special occasion for baseball fans, catching one at a Bananas game affects the game.
Where else will the Bananas play in 2025?
This summer, the Bananas started playing at major sporting venues across the country. They packed Boston’s Fenway Park, among other locations, earlier this year.
The 2025 Banana Ball World Tour is expected to be among the biggest seasons for the team yet, with the Bananas visiting 18 MLB stadiums, including Camden Yards. The Bananas will also host games at football stadiums in 2025, visiting Clemson’s Memorial Stadium and the Tennessee Titans’ Nissan Stadium.
“Our goal has always been to be Fans First and to take Banana Ball to as many fans as possible,” Bananas owner Jesse Cole, who wears a yellow suit to games, said in a news release. “Now, to be at some of the largest stadiums in the entire country, these venues are something we never could have imagined. We know they will provide an electric atmosphere which will create some unforgettable nights for our fans.”
Who plays for the Bananas?
The Orioles’ Cade Povich is among the members of Baltimore’s current organization who played for the Bananas when they were a summer college league team. The current Bananas roster is slightly less talented than those days, but it’s still filled with gifted performers and solid baseball players.
Savannah’s current 24-player roster includes players from all over the country, although the team doesn’t have a Maryland native on the roster. Jackson Olson is one of the team’s most popular players, with more than 1 million TikTok followers and over 600,000 Instagram followers. Olson played baseball in college at the University of Hartford, and he’s built a loyal online following by sharing what it’s like to play for the Bananas.
While not an MLB player, Olson is a talented player and he’s highly entertaining in his role as a Banana. Plenty of other Bananas fall in the same boat with experience playing high-level baseball and a knack for entertaining fans. Former MLB stars, such as closer Jonathan Papelbon, have made guest appearances for the Bananas. Papelbon pitched for the Bananas this year at Fenway Park, even wearing the kilt. It’s possible, although nothing has been announced, that former Orioles players could be involved with the Bananas’ Camden Yards visit in August.
How can I buy tickets?
Tickets for Banana Ball World Tour games at Camden Yards and across the country are awarded through a lottery system. Fans wanting to attend games need to sign up for the lottery before Nov. 1. If you’re a winner of the lottery, you’re given the ability to purchase tickets to the event. Lottery winners are announced two months before each game.
There’s expected to be high demand for the tour, including the team’s trip to Baltimore.
“It is a can’t miss show,” Bananas’ coach Tyler Gillum said in a news release.
Have a news tip? Contact Bennett Conlin at [email protected], 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.
