Savannah Bananas to play their zany game at KC Royals’ Kauffman Stadium next year
Has an outfielder ever caught a fly ball in the middle of a backflip at Kauffman Stadium?
Well there’s a first for everything, and it’s coming next year.
The Savannah Bananas, that zany baseball team that’s as likely to show up on “The Kelly Clarkson Show” as ESPN, will play two games at The K in May, the team announced Thursday.
The team will play in 40 cities, three football stadiums and 18 Major League Baseball stadiums, including Boston’s Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium — where the Royals play the first game of the AL division series Saturday.
They’ll also play at Nissan Stadium, home of the Tennessee Titans in Nashville.
The team also announced the formation of the Banana Ball Championship League. Beginning in 2026, the new BBCL will have six teams that will each play a full Banana Ball schedule.
The 60-game season will end with the crowning of a league champ.
For an old-school reference, think Harlem Globetrotters in cleats. The Bananas play against partner touring teams called the Party Animals, Firefighters and Texas Tailgaters.
There is nothing traditional about their brand of ball. In addition to a pep band, costumed characters, a dancing umpire and choreographed celebrations, Banana Ball involves its own rules.
Among them: no walks, no bunting, no mound visits; if a fan catches a foul ball, it’s an out; and batters can try to steal first base on passed balls or wild pitches.
The game is fast — there’s a two-hour limit — and the pitching explosive.
Never seen a batter on stilts or wearing a kilt? This is where it happens.
Team owner Jesse Cole told ESPN he expects sellouts at every venue.
“We played in front of 1 million fans this past year,” he told ESPN. “We’re playing in front of 2 million fans next year. Maybe that sounds boastful, but our waitlist is at 3 million right now.”
The Bananas played their first game in 2020 and have rocketed in popularity since. TikTok, where the team has nearly 9 million followers, provided the jet fuel.
“It’s something I could’ve never imagined,” he said. “Walt Disney has been my biggest mentor forever. He said, ‘It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.’ I just feel, in many ways, we are doing the impossible.”
The Bananas, whose roster includes pitcher Noah Niznik of Imperial, Missouri, played at Legends Field in Kansas City, Kansas, in 2022 and 2023.
To have a chance of obtaining tickets to the games at The K, fans first have to enter a lottery on the team’s website — thesavannahbananas.com. A random drawing will take place about two months before the games for the chance to buy tickets.
The lottery closes Nov. 1. Tickets will be $40-$80, with VIP and meet-and-greet tickets starting at $125.
Two things to know:
▪ The early bird does not necessarily get the worm. How soon you sign up for the lottery does not affect your chances for being chosen in the random drawing.
▪ The Bananas warn that if you see tickets for sale outside of their official lottery, they are likely fraudulent.
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