Events
The Bananas were sure to cater to the Boston crowd with themed sing-a-longs, appearances by Red Sox champions, Dunkin’ freebies, and a jab at Mac Jones.
A sea of yellow took over Fenway Park and the surrounding streets for the sold-out Savannah Bananas game Saturday night.
Jersey, Van Ness, and Lansdowne streets were one big party all afternoon in the lead-up to the evening game, with banana-themed attire and silly props aplenty.
If you were not one of the lucky ones to secure a ticket via the lottery, we’ve got you covered with the moments you missed. Here are the takeaways:
Fenway goes bananas, but not for the Red Sox
With more than 37,000 people in attendance – a majority of whom appeared to be in their seats at least a half hour before game time – it was hard not to acknowledge how different the energy felt from any recent Red Sox game.
Just look at this video of the crowd, holding up phone flashlights and singing Coldplay’s “Yellow” in one of the later innings:
Boston’s major league team has yet to see crowds as full and energized as that this season, so what exactly is the a-peel of this exhibition team?
The entertainment is on the field, in the stands, and all around
The Bananas, essentially baseball’s Harlem Globetrotters, follow a “fans first, entertain always” philosophy, which ensures a high-energy, fun-filled game for all.
It’s hard to know exactly where to look during the game, as the entertainment is everywhere. Players are constantly running through the stands and interacting with fans, whether it be leading the crowd in cheers or sharing a bite of a fan’s food.
A multi-piece band even made its way through the crowd over the course of the game — tuba and all.
As for the actual baseball game, the team follows a unique set of rules for what it deems “Banana Ball.” Not familiar? Check out this guide, as well as our previous coverage from the Bananas’ last Massachusetts stop in Brockton.
Among the rules, the first one may be the most important: teams must win the inning to get a point. Runs reset at the end of every inning, unlike a typical MLB game. Whichever team has the most runs gets the point to win the inning. That is, until the last inning, during which every run counts.
Players also manage to add in trick plays such as backflip catches in center field, bounce passes, and unique pitches like one involving a hockey stick.
On Saturday, the Party Animals beat the Bananas, 4-1, with the Animals earning 12 runs in total.
Former Red Sox players trade in for yellow jerseys
Savannah Bananas games often feature special cameos.
Saturday night, three Red Sox champions and a Red Sox Hall of Fame pitcher returned to the historic ballpark for such appearances.
Jonathan Papelbon, Mitch “2-bags” Moreland, Jonny Gomes, and Bill “Spaceman” Lee each appeared in yellow jerseys, either taking the mound or the batter box for the Savannah Bananas.
On-theme sing-a-longs and other locally-inspired moments
“Shipping Up to Boston” wasn’t the only on-theme song of the night. The Bananas made sure to play to the Boston crowd with plenty of entertainment featuring local cultural ties.
This included the Bananas singing “More Than a Feeling” by the rock band Boston, as well as the Party Animals breaking out some “Sweet Caroline” early in the game.
In the third inning, a clip from the 2001 film “Legally Blonde” played on the screen as the Party Animals performed the iconic “bend-and-snap” maneuver.
Though “Legally Blonde” was not filmed locally, the movie is set mostly at Harvard University in Cambridge.
The Bananas mascot drags Mac Jones
One of the many sources of entertainment on the field was the mascot for the Savannah Bananas, known as Split or the “King of Potassium.”
Split held up a whiteboard throughout the game with varying messages — at least one of which has been making rounds on social media.
“Thank god Mac Jones is gone,” the mascot’s sign read.
The Bananas run on Dunkin’
It wouldn’t be a fully New England experience without a little Dunkin’, right? It turns out that the Savannah team runs on more than just bananas.
The team has partnered with Dunkin’ for promotions before, including for the Massachusetts-founded chain’s banana bread release earlier this year.
Toward the end of the game, Dunkin’ tossed bags of free munchkins into the Fenway crowd — a different treat compared to the bunches of bananas that the players had handed out to fans in the stands during the pre-game.
On Friday, Bananas players also took a duck boat to a Dunkin’ location in Kenmore Square, high-fiving customers and handing out gift cards and other goodies, MassLive and other media outlets reported.
@masslivenews Customers at one Boston Dunkin’ got more than just their coffee and a free doughnut for National Doughnut Day Friday morning — they also got a surprise visit “TikTok’s favorite baseball team,” @The Savannah Bananas #foryou #foryoupage #boston #savannahbananas #dunkin ♬ Dj Boom Bass Cek Sound – DJ RAKA
Still feel like you missed out? The Savannah Bananas livestreamed the game. Watch the full event below:
Get the latest Boston sports news
Receive updates on your favorite Boston teams, straight from our newsroom to your inbox.