Savannah Bananas vs. KC Monarchs in “banana ball” at Legends

December 10, 2022

Chris Ortiz,

Last spring’s Savannah Bananas game. // Photo by Chris Ortiz

“People ask me what I do in the winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.” –Rogers Hornsby

For a baseball fan, nothing is truer than those words from Rogers Hornsby Sr. (April 27, 1896 – January 5, 1963), nicknamed “The Rajah”. After October, there is a lot of off-season transactions from one team to another, trying to build on the past year’s success and improve on the failures, and when the early months of the next year rolls around, when teams report to spring training, the countdown begins. Fans of the sport follow ever minute that goes by, from when the pitchers and catchers first report to how a certain someone looks during his time playing spring ball.

However, for the Savanna Bananas, the rising star of the baseball world from this past year, this coming season is going to be full of new adventures. They have expanded on what they call their “World Tour” from only six stops, with Kansas City being the final destination, which originally was unannounced. “We didn’t even think about coming to Kansas City when we first started,” states Bananas’ owner Jesse Cole. “But Mark, the Monarchs’ owner, reached out to me about an idea about playing the Monarchs, and knowing the original history of the Kansas City Monarchs and the barnstorming, it made sense as our tour expanded to go play them.”

“I was not excited about Kansas City as I knew nothing about it other than that it existed. I am always down to see a new city, but it seemed like a checklist destination,” states Matt DeWitt, who is a member of the teams “Dad Bod Cheer Squad” group that travels to each game and is now a part of the logistics for the team. But now, it is the opposite. “I genuinely am excited to go back! The ballpark is gorgeous and fun to run around in, which was pleasant.”

“As far as coming back,” add Cole, “we sold out both nights very quickly. The response from the fans was unbelievable, and the competition from the Monarchs, they were all in, it was a great series. It was a no brainer to come back.”

The Monarchs are what the Bananas consider a “challenger”, which is a team that is not The Bananas or their rival, The Party Animals. In total, the Bananas will play 10 challengers on this world tour (also with some international teams) which Cole hopes to expand the idea of Banana Ball. “The fact that The Monarchs took the chance to be the first challenger will always stand as a corner of Banana ball history. That keeps KC and Savannah linked in perpetuity,” added DeWitt.

For those readers who are not familiar with the term “Banana Ball,” it is explained in nine simple rules. First, every inning counts; meaning if you win the inning by outscoring the other team, you get a single point. The final inning matters the most, as every run counts as a point. The second rule is that there is a two hour time limit. That is it, once those two hours are done, the game is done, unless there is a tie. If that is the situation, then the game goes to a one-on-one show down; pitcher verses hitter, with only one filder. The pitcher has to stop the hitter or the hitter has to score. The fourth rule is no bunting. Baseball is supposed to be a hitters game, so let the players go out and hit. You can also steal first base, regardless of the pitch count. If a wild pitch is thrown, be on the lookout for someone running down the first base line. However, there are also no walks allowed in Banana Ball. On ball four, the batter takes off towards first and is allowed to advance to as many bases as he can while the catcher has to throw the ball to every single position player before it becomes live. For the seventh rule, there is no stepping out of the batter’s box. If you step out it is an automatic strike. This, like the next rule, is designed to help keep the game going. That next rule is no mound visits. As Cole puts it, the mound visit is a “slow walk to delay the game, and the fans don’t need that.” And finally, going along Cole’s idea of “Fans First”, if a fan catches a foul ball, it is an out. That is right, the fans get to be part of the game.

When asked about what Kansas City and the Monarchs meant to the Bananas, Cole said “We were blown away. First when we came to Kansas City, and went to the Negro Leagues Museum, and to see this history of the Monarchs and the whole barnstorming showmanship type of baseball, it means a lot to us. Obviously, they fundamentally changed the game of baseball back in the Negro League Days, and if we can fundamentally change the game into a level of new excitement, new energy, and new showmanship now, that would be a great honor. The Monarchs mean a lot and we’re so glad that that was the first ever Challenger we played.

“I never like to say too far ahead of what’s to come, but I’ll tell ya the first two games against the Monarchs were outstanding and I know that this year will be just the same.”

“Baseball’s a great game,” states Cole. “And it was the greatest game for many years. But, fundamentally, people entertainment needs change on a daily basis, and we’re being entertained every seven seconds on TikTok and Instagram, and I think that peoples’ needs are different. So yeah, I think that the game of Baseball is great; Major League Baseball has the World playing, there’s nothing against that. We’re just something different, and we’re focused on the people that may not necessarily love baseball but love the idea of entertainment and seeing things that have never happened before in a baseball field.”

This year, the Bananas have stops in 33 cities, with 10 challengers with the goal to see if Banana Ball can stand on it’s own, where 98% of their fans stay till the end of the game, with three games at Legends Field, from May 4th-6th, with the start time of 7pm.

For more information on the Bananas, please visit their website at www.thesavannahbananas.com and for the Monarchs at www.monarchsbaseball.com

Photos from the spring game, shot by Chris Ortiz: