HOUSTON — A new brand of baseball drew a packed crowd into Minute Maid Park. The Savannah Bananas, who have exploded in popularity for Banana Ball, made their MLB stadium debut on Saturday.
Fans of all ages said they were excited to see a new, entertaining twist on America’s pastime. The game at the home of the Houston Astros is the only one being held in Texas.
For the Fisher family, it’s a different day at the ballpark.
“It was one of their Christmas presents that we got in the lottery and in the drawing, when she got it, it’s instant tears,” Katie Fisher said.
“I love that it's super fan interactive and it's not just about watching the baseball, you get to interact with the team and everything,” said Hannah Fisher.
Fisher and her relatives all showed up in homemade t-shirts, in a nod to the Bananas’ love for Taylor Swift.
‘Banana Ball’ is focused on making baseball fun, their website says.
Bananas, balancing acts and busting out dance moves is part of what makes the Savannah Bananas anything but boring.
“I follow all of the players on TikTok and I love ‘banana ball’ because it's entertaining and really, really fun,” Emma Hale from Houston said.
They play a different set of rules than big league teams. That includes a two-hour time limit, foul balls caught by fans are counted as outs, no bunting and batters can steal first, just to name a few.
The Bananas’ first game in a big league stadium featured some cameos appreciated by Astros fans. Pitchers Roger Clemens and Roy Oswalt both took the mound during the game.
For families like the Fishers who have followed the team, who has more than 8 million followers on TikTok and 2.4 million followers on Instagram, it was an entertaining night out.
“You see it all over social media and everything but to have it experienced here at Minute Maid is huge, with this large of a crowd. I completely expected this sold-out show,” Katie Fisher said.
Minute Maid Park is one of six major league stadiums the Bananas will be playing in. They head to Baton Rouge next week, and the rest of the games this season are sold out.