Five barnstorming teams will join Savannah Bananas in 2026

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Banana Ball continues to grow.

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Savannah Bananas remains a symbol of the boisterous style of rowdy entertainment, but on Thursday night founder Jesse Cole announced further growth for his brand of baseball jokes.

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Cole said the Savannah Bananas will be joined by five teams in 2026 in a new league that plans to play in 75 stadiums in 45 states. Cole said the Banana Ball attracted 2.2 million fans this year, and he hopes that number will grow to 3.3 million in 2026.

Cole said Banana Ball will be played at 14 major league parks and 10 ballparks, including two NFL stadiums — the Superdome in New Orleans and Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots. The new Banana Ball Championship League will include visits to college football stadiums such as Neyland Stadium in Tennessee and Kyle Field at Texas A&M.

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“To see the reaction from fans all over the country, I don’t think anyone could have imagined this,” Cole told The Associated Press on Thursday, adding that he had only sold “a handful of tickets” when Savannah Bananas was founded in 2016.

In 2023, the Savannah Bananas exhibit opened at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. The exhibit was a recognition of Cole's success in attracting young fans with shenanigans such as the player on stilts and outs counted when a fan makes a foul catch in the stands.

Two new teams will be added in 2026 – the Loco Beach Coconuts and the Indianapolis Clowns, a tribute to the original team that inspired Cole.

The new league is adding new “prime-time coaching” positions that will be filled by two former major leaguers on the new teams, Loco Beach's Shane Victorino and Indianapolis' Ryan Howard.

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“To be given the opportunity to coach a Banana Ball team that pays homage to the Negro Leagues? It is an honor,” Howard said in a statement released by the league. “The names that came before us – Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Cool Papa Bell – these legends paved the way. They played the game with style, with soul, with swagger.

“Banana Ball is energy, it's fun, it's changing the script, and you know what? That's exactly what the Negro Leagues have brought to the game since day one.”

Other teams in the league are the Party Animals, Fire Fighters and Texas Tailgaters.

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