In October of 2015, we first arrived in Savannah as a college summer team with a goal in mind: make baseball fun and bring fans back to Historic Grayson Stadium. 

For the first time, minor league baseball had left the city of Savannah after calling it home for 90 years. Because of this, we started to realize that getting fans excited for a college summer team was going to be harder than we ever could have imagined. 

In our first few months, we sold only a handful of tickets. By January of 2016, just months before our first game, the team had over-drafted our bank account. Our owners, Jesse and Emily Cole, were forced to sell their home to keep the team and their dream going. 

But on February 25, 2016 when we announced the team name as the “Savannah Bananas”… everything changed.

This announcement created massive attention locally and nationally, being covered by CBS, NBC, and Sports Illustrated, even being featured as SportsCenter’s “Logo of the Year”.

Despite all the attention, the team name was not liked or appreciated by most people in Savannah. We heard comments like “the owner should be thrown out of town” and “you’ll never sell a ticket.”

However, even with mixed reviews, we were finally on the map and people knew who we were. 

With all the buzz, we were able to sell out Opening Night. Our fans were met with a completely unique experience including all-inclusive food, a senior citizen dance team, the first Banana Baby, and dancing baseball players. 

Since our first season, we’ve sold out every single game.. From NFL and MLB stadiums across the country to our beloved Grayson Stadium, every stop reminds us where it all started.

https://thesavannahbananas.com/about_us/