‘A Two-Hour Escape’: Inside Savannah Bananas’ Record-Breaking Night at Kyle Field

This story was originally published in the Texas A&M University student publication The Battalion. Ian Curtis is the winner of the Rolling Stone College Journalism Award in the Entertainment Reporting Category.

When former Texas A&M baseball player and 12th Man Hayden Schott walked out onto the grass at Kyle Field, he had to suspend his reality for a moment, for one of the world’s most iconic football stadiums was suddenly covered by a baseball diamond.

“It’s a weird feeling,” Schott said. “This doesn’t feel like a baseball field, but you know what, man, it’s going to be tonight, and they’re gonna find a way to make it really fun. And so I think this is a classic example of you got to put all your pre-decisions you’ve made in your mind away and just enjoy the show.”

With the stadium sound system already blasting a variety of nostalgic pop hits before the gates had even opened, Schott told The Battalion that he was looking forward to seeing the Banana Ball Championship League — the sports entertainment empire that combines music and dancing with baseball and almost anything else imaginable — take center stage in the largest stadium it’s ever been played in.

“I think it’s just an unbelievable show,” Schott said. “I don’t think people understand what really goes into something like this, the amount of effort that comes in. You don’t wing something like this. I hope people understand how much time it took, how much effort, I’m sure the Bananas and all of them did put into this, and how great of a show it’s gonna be, man.”

What followed over the course of the next several hours was an all-out assault on the senses. As the Savannah Bananas faced off against the Texas Tailgaters in front of a sold-out crowd of 102,000, the baseball game between the two was only half of the excitement.

A nonstop parade of celebrity cameos, musical performances, dance choreography, sideshows — welcome back, baby races — and other antics combined in a fashion that only Banana Ball could provide, all with one goal in mind: Make things fun for the fans. Editor’s picks The 250 Greatest Albums of the 21st Century So Far The 100 Best TV Episodes of All Time The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century

“There’s a passion in this fanbase right here, and it’s unbelievable,” Savannah Bananas owner and Fans First Entertainment founder Jesse Cole said. “I mean, we felt it seeing 40,000 people out there three hours before the show, and then [102,000] tonight. There’s nothing like it: The energy, the enthusiasm, the crowd, it was, it was truly special. This is definitely going to leave a lasting impression for all of us, not just myself, but our players, our cast and the hundreds of teammates we brought here.”

Banana Ball itself is the brainchild of Cole, who took a summer collegiate league baseball team and combined it with musical theater-inspired entertainment and a long history of baseball barnstorming tours to create Banana Ball, a fan-first fusion of all three.

The Kyle Field showing of 102,000 was the largest crowd that the Bananas had ever played in front of, Cole said.