The Savannah Bananas Are Taking Over Baseball

The Savannah Bananas — a barnstorming exhibition team that plays their own version of baseball called “Banana Ball” — are racking up ticket sales, virality, and influence.

The Big Swing: In an era of shrinking attention spans, America’s favorite pastime has been pressured to… well… pick up the pace. It’s hard not to imagine that the antics of the Bananas pushed the MLB to add some time-crunch elements to pro ball. With golf and other sports dabbling in similar stunts, this could be a broader playbook shift.

Between The Plates: The Savannah Bananas are to baseball what the Harlem Globetrotters are to basketball.

• Since debuting Banana Ball in 2022, the team’s games (typically against rivals like The Firefighters and The Party Animals) have sold out iconic venues like Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium.
• According to The WSJ, the club’s waitlist has a whopping 3.6 million names. Seats go for around $60 and are sold directly to fans (helping protect against resellers).
• That demand is attributed to their success on social media — the Bananas have 10 million followers on TikTok who watch clips of their hijinks. For comparison, the LA Dodgers have 2.3 million.

Last Inning: Banana Ball is the brainchild of club owner Jesse Cole, known during games as the “Man in the Yellow Suit.” His pitch? Make games short (under two hours), add stunts (batting on stilts, dancing umpires), and involve fans (a caught foul ball counts as an out). Turns out that pitch was a home run.

Amazingly, Cole says that the franchise doesn’t spend any money on traditional advertising — the growth has all come from online virality, word of mouth, and media attention. They’ve also taken no outside financing and have no intention of selling the team.

Prospects: Don’t be surprised if pro players start moonlighting in stunt leagues to boost their profile… or just learn how to cartwheel into a double play.