Team Tampa Bay's Take with Joey Johnston: Banana Ball Bliss

By Joey Johnston

After the Savannah Bananas brought their unique flavor of baseball entertainment to the Tampa Bay area for the first time — an incomparable weekend that featured two sellout crowds at Steinbrenner Field, hilarious dance routines, backflip catches in the outfield, one player on stilts, mound appearances by 76-year-old Bill Lee, double-play relays thrown through the legs, trick pitches, a fireworks show, an improbable walk-off rally and nonstop entertainment even during a rain delay — the man behind the “Banana Ball’’ phenomenon was emotional and overwhelmed.

“We’ve been to a lot of places around the country and we’re always very well-received,’’ Bananas owner Jesse Cole said. “But Tampa has got to be at the top of the list — the very top.’’

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Cole praised the organization and hospitality of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission and the New York Yankees, who partnered to attract the Bananas, the sports entertainment viral sensation that was sought by more than 100 communities for a spot on the team’s 33-city World Tour. Cole also said the fan engagement was “over the top’’ and everyone in the Bananas’ organization was made to feel welcome by Team Tampa Bay from the moment of arrival on Thursday afternoon.

“I don’t want to be too cliche political, but the reality is every single thing since we’ve been in Tampa has been first class — from how we’ve been greeted to people making sure we had what we needed to how the fans reacted to us,’’ Cole said. “Our guys have gone out and experienced Tampa and every place they went, every restaurant they went to, so many kids and families were there saying, ‘Can I have a picture? Can I have an autograph?’

“The whole Yankee organization, from the moment we stepped off the bus and walked in, it was, ‘This is how we want to take care of you guys. This is how we will welcome you. We want you guys back. We want this to be the best experience possible.’ And it was.’’

The Bananas also made a lasting impression on the Tampa Bay area sports scene.

“The Savannah Bananas are one of the hottest and most innovative sports properties in the country, which afforded us an invaluable opportunity to learn from Jesse and their team leading up to and during the event,’’ Tampa Bay Sports Commission executive director Rob Higgins said. “However, the ultimate reward was seeing more than 20,000 smiles on the faces of the visiting and local fans. It was a weekend our community will never forget. Team Tampa Bay loved going bananas.’’

“We truly couldn’t have been more thrilled with having the Bananas here,’’ Yankees senior vice president Tony Bruno said. “What a great event to have in our community, tremendous family fun and entertainment, all revolving around the game of baseball. How it was perceived by the fans, how it was executed, the fun everyone had, it was all way beyond any of our expectations.’’

Cole, who has made a career out of surpassing everyone’s expectations, said he knew early on that Tampa’s Steinbrenner Field venue would become an especially memorable site for Banana Ball.

“We were doing our pregame parade, when we march into the stadium, and just to see the excitement of those thousands and thousands of fans, it was emotional,’’ Cole said. “We were hugging each other and saying, ‘Look at what this has become.’ We’re so appreciative of everything we experienced in Tampa. I think the whole thing was just perfect.’’

For a while, Tampa’s weather was less than perfect as Saturday afternoon torrential rain led into a one-hour delay. The forecast didn’t look promising and the tarpaulin was placed on the field. Later, there was even a tornado watch in the area.

Still, the stadium seats remained filled. Bananas players sang, danced and performed some slip-and-slide antics on the tarp. There wasn’t a hint of restlessness. Everyone bunkered in and hoped the show would go on.

Cole left no doubt as he took to the microphone and proclaimed: “We … will … play … tonight!’’

“We have a great staff here that is very in tune with reading the weather and we were very collaborative with the Bananas from the very first indication of bad weather on Saturday night,’’ Bruno said. “From where we stood at 2 o’clock on Saturday afternoon to the fact that we had the first pitch with a delay of just one hour on Saturday night, I think it’s nothing short of a miracle. It’s a reflection of the great people operating our facility, our grounds crew and the Bananas’ ability to keep everyone engaged.

“You’ve got to understand, it never happens this way with outdoor sports and this kind of weather threat. People usually realize they’d rather be indoors and not expose themselves. But everyone stayed. It was fascinating to see the passion and following of these Banana fans. They were entertained. They were patient. And ultimately, they were rewarded.’’

Eventually, the weather broke and fans got their Banana Ball.

Led by home runs from Eric Jones and Dan Oberst, the Bananas crunched a team of Major League Players Association alumni 8-0, staging a “walk-off’’ in each inning (as part of Banana Ball rules, the teams get one point for each inning they win). The MLBPA, led by local products such as Matt Joyce, Jason Romano, Bronson Arroyo and Tampa resident Nick Swisher, was managed by the Team Tampa Bay legend Lou Piniella.

The MLB veterans were great sports and enjoyed the fun. But the fans were Saturday night’s Most Valuable Players.

“Shout out to Tampa Bay and shout out to the fans in my hometown,’’ said Oberst, a St. Petersburg product. “We did our best to entertain them. They brought the energy in every single minute of the weekend. I mean, the Lightning were in a home playoff game (Saturday night) about the same time and our stands were still packed. It was special. The whole weekend was filled with goosebump moments.’’

“Amazing stadium, amazing fans, amazing weekend,’’ Bananas manager Tyler Gillum said. “I think Tampa was built for Banana Ball.’’

And if anyone doubted that, they could just look across the street to Raymond James Stadium, where the LED lights were yellow in a hat-tip to Banana Ball.

“That was the coolest!’’ Gillum said. “Our guys saw that and they loved it. No detail too small to make us feel at home.’’

The Banana Ball weekend began with Friday night’s riveting 5-4 nine-inning walk-off victory against the Party Animals, the villainous foils who have developed their own antihero following. For those who insist on comparing the Party Animals to the Washington Generals — the sad-sack scripted opponent for Harlem Globetrotters’ basketball — they should know that the Party Animals actually have the upper hand against the Bananas on this World Tour.

When Friday night’s ninth inning began, the Party Animals led 4-1 and there was no evidence that the Bananas had enough juice for a comeback. But the crowd of 10,000-plus at Steinbrenner Field kept making noise.

“Then the whole thing became like something unlike anything else I’ve experienced in Banana Ball,’’ said veteran Bananas catcher Bill LeRoy. “I think the Tampa fans imposed their will. They gave us like this magical energy and they refused to see us lose.’’

In the final inning, the Banana Bull rules revert back to standard baseball, meaning that every run counted, so the Bananas needed three runs to force a tie-breaking showdown.

With one out against Party Animals closer Brett Helton, LeRoy drilled a full-count single up the middle. Then Vincent Derubeis dumped a bloop single to right field, a hit all the more amazing because Derubeis can only see out of his right eye (he wears an eye patch on his left eye, the result of a beanball in his final year of college baseball).

Oberst promptly fouled off seven straight pitches — causing Banana fans to hold their breath, because it’s an out if a fan catches a foul ball — before smacking a hard-hit ball to second base. It could’ve been a game-ending double play. But after the force at second, the relay was thrown away, leaving runners at the corners with two outs.

Up came Eric Jones, who’s hoping to parlay his Bananas experience into a major-league look after spending last season as the Seattle Mariners’ bullpen catcher. Jones lifted a 1-1 pitch high and deep, over the head of backtracking center fielder Reece Hampton, a superior fielder who saw the ball just flicker past his glove’s web. Two runs scored and the Bananas suddenly trailed just 4-3.

With Malachi Mitchell (the self-proclaimed “Fastest Man In Baseball’’) pinch-running at second base, Helton worked himself into trouble by delivering three straight balls to Michael Deeb. Strike one was called. Deeb then nearly walked it off, slamming a rainbow shot that was headed for the right-field foul pole before hooking out of play and probably bouncing to Dale Mabry Highway.

Full count.

“The fans were going nuts and you could barely hear yourself think, almost the sensation you get from a football crowd,’’ said Deeb, a former linebacker at Notre Dame. “Of course, in that situation, the adrenaline is going crazy. The crowd is roaring. You’d love to walk it off. But you’ve got to stay disciplined.’’

Helton was high and outside for ball four.

And that spelled doom for the Party Animals. In Banana Ball parlance, a walk is actually termed a “sprint,’’ meaning the batter sprints to first base and beyond on ball four, running freely until each of the Party Animal defenders touch the ball. Mitchell, the baserunner at second, almost could’ve crawled home.

It was tied.

Then it was left to Dakota McFadden, who drove a 1-2 fastball for a double into the right-center field gap, allowing Deeb to score from second base. It made the Bananas into winners and sent the crowd into hysterics.

“I just don’t remember many — or any — Banana Ball games like that,’’ Cole said. “We had two foul balls caught by fans — one against each team — and all the things we tried in the show went off very well. Then to have an amazing finish like that? Just insane. You probably couldn’t write a finish like that even if you were making it up. I’ll remember that one forever.’’

“I’ve been doing this Banana thing a while and this whole experience in Tampa was definitely one for the books,’’ LeRoy said. “We’re so appreciative of the support we get everywhere. But the Tampa fans were ridiculous. We could feel their energy every step of the way. As players, we had an absolute blast. I think the fans really enjoyed it, too. This is what Banana Ball is all about, man. We felt the love from Tampa. We wanted to love them right back and give them a great experience.’’

The word from Higgins and Bruno was clear: Tampa Bay wants more Banana Ball.

“An annual event would be great,’’ Bruno said. “I know the Bananas have ambitions of playing in larger venues, but their product is intimate and we believe Steinbrenner Field is a great size for the Bananas. I went from zero-to-60 on this when Rob (Higgins) first brought it to us in terms of the potential reach and how the fans react. Now that I’ve learned about it and seen it first-hand, I think they have an incredible product and a guy in Jesse Cole who is probably as all-in on what he’s doing as anyone I have ever seen.

“I spent most of Saturday night watching the game with my 84-year-old mother, who’s a huge baseball fan but had no idea what to expect. She absolutely loved what she saw. It was so fun to see it through her eyes. After the game, on the plaza, Jesse was out talking to the fans. I saw a young kid talking to him, as if Jesse was the manager for an MLB team, and saying how much he wanted to play for the Bananas one day. Jesse engaged so nicely with that kid, who was wearing the Bananas jersey. You talk about something that is so relatable to all ages. We’re going to be watching the Bananas with a lot of interest in the future and we’d absolutely love to have them back with us in Tampa.’’

Team Tampa Bay's Take - Bananas Story 1