What is ‘Banana-ball’? Savannah-based baseball team brings talent, antics to Durham
Durham Bulls Athletic Park will be a bit more yellow this weekend — banana yellow, to be exact.
The internet-famous Savannah Bananas are taking over the ballpark for a two-day, two-game event for their World Tour. It’ll feature TikTok dancing, autograph signings, goofy bits and, of course, Banana Ball. The organization’s self-described goal is to help bring energy back into America’s pastime.
The Savannah Bananas were founded by Jesse and Emily Cole in 2016, originally a part of the Coastal Plains Baseball League, a summer collegiate baseball league. The team left the CPBL to become an independent team, along with the Bananas’ in-house opponent, the Party Animals, and are now in the middle of their nation-wide tour.
Team President Jared Orton has been with the organization since its inception. He spoke with The News & Observer to explain what the Bananas experience is like.
“When you go to any sporting event or entertainment, show or whatever, it’s a very passive experience,” Orton said. “You sit there, and you watch something happen. And so the thesis of our experience is we want the fans to feel and actually be involved in it.”
A few viral TikToks of players dancing in between pitches and a very enthusiastic umpire led to the team’s explosion. Since then, the Bananas have almost entirely sold out its full 2023 season, both the home games in Savannah, Georgia, and games all around the country.
For the roughly 20,000 fans that will behold the chaos of Banana Ball, this weekend: Buckle up. It’s more than just hot dogs, beer and a ballgame.
What should I expect?
The full-day event begins long before the first pitch. Fans typically arrive at the ballpark hours before the gates even open, because of a few established pregame traditions.
First, the Bananas staff looks for one little fan to be the Banana Baby that’s honored in a pregame ceremony. There’s also the Banana Nanas, a senior citizen dance squad, and the Man-anas, a dad-bod squad.
Along with the crazy, fan-involved traditions, the entire stadium is open seating. Standard tickets cost $25, and are good for anywhere in the stadium — up high, right behind home plate, anywhere. So it’s best to get there early for the best seats.
There’s one more pregame caveat — it’s a brand-new rule that Bananas installed just over a month ago: the fan challenge.
“Now actually we will pick a fan before the game to be the judge of one of these reviews,” Orton said. “They can institute a challenge on behalf of the fans. If you’re watching a sporting event at home, you’re always like, ‘Oh, that was a terrible call. Like it’s so obvious.’ And now, the fans have a voice and they can be the ones to challenge that call.”
After a “heated argument” during a Bananas game in Tulsa, Oklahoma earlier this summer, the organization created the new rule that promotes more fan interaction.
“It kind of came to the point of like, ‘alright, we should let the coaches be able to challenge but also we should allow the fans to challenge,’” Orton said.
What is Banana Ball?
Clearly, this isn’t your average baseball game. And the Bananas make no exception when it comes to the rules of the game. There’s nine big rules to understanding Banana Ball:
Win the inning, get a point
Two hour time limit
No stepping out of the batter’s box
No mound visits
No bunting
Batters can steal first
Walks are sprints
If a fan catches a ball, it’s an out
The showdown rule
Most of the rules are straight forward. With the ‘win the inning, get a point’ rule, it means that scores are kept by whichever team scores more per inning, until the last inning. So if the Bananas score two runs and the Party Animals score one run in the first inning, the score is 1-0.
If a player bunts at any point in the game, they’re ejected.
Walks becoming sprints essentially gives the batter a chance at an inside-the-park home run. Every fielder has to touch the ball in order for it to become live once the fourth ball is called and the batter takes off.
The showdown rule is how Banana Ball handles extra innings. If a game is tied, the game goes into three rounds. First round is pitcher and catcher vs. batter and one base runner. Second round has just a pitcher, catcher vs. a batter. And the final run has the bases loaded. If there’s a home run, it’s a walk-off win.
Showdown’s are pretty rare for Banana Ball, Orton said, since the idea is to play the full game in two hours. But Orton said Showdowns are one of his favorite parts of the game, and fans lucky enough to see a Showdown usually agree.
“It has got that hockey, soccer feel where it’s, one versus one,” Orton said. “The ball gets past the pitcher and fielders have to chase the thing down. The guys are running around the bases, they’re throwing it and there’s a play at the plate. It’s just super exciting and super funny to watch a guy just take off trying to chase a ball down.”
Behind the scenes
The point of the fast pace and rule changes is to allow more time for the silly antics the team is known for. But fans will also get a close look at the creation of those famous TikTok videos — both for the team’s accounts and the players’ personal accounts.
One of the most underrated parts of seeing the Bananas in person is the interactions that happen before, during and after every game. Most of the time, these interactions range from photos, making TikToks, signing autographs, etc. and don’t always appear on social media.
Orton said it’s part of the organization’s goal to continue inspiring athletes and fans everywhere they visit, and give the players a chance to show off their own personalities.
“You don’t just have to be a Bananas player or a Party Animals player,” Orton said. “You can truly show your personality what you’re interested in, create funny videos like play off of some of the things that happen you know, in the locker room or behind the scenes or when we’re on bus trips.”
And of course, the important factor of every Bananas game — it’s not scripted. Every game played is a genuine game, and the Bananas can and will lose to the Party Animals.
“The funny things that we do between innings and dances, the videos, of course, all that’s planned and scripted,” Orton said. “But I always tell people like once that ball gets thrown, we have no idea what’s gonna happen after that, and I think that’s what keeps people on their toes — that’s what keeps people coming back. “
There are still some gameday events better left to experience, Orton said, but also said every game is its own unique adventure for everyone involved.
And that’s what makes it fun.
