Our Bananas Fans,
As we finish our 2021 season, we are overcome with gratitude.
This season was truly magical, and this team was special. The moments were unforgettable, and you were there every step of the way.
You guys are crazy for the Bananas, and we love it. With every game being a sell out again this year, our team can feel the support echoing off the stadium walls every night!
This electric atmosphere helped lead the 2021 Bananas to achieve more than any team in Bananas history, culminating with winning the CPL Championship right here at Grayson Stadium.
Banana Nation continued to grow significantly larger with over one hundred thousand fans experiencing a game this season and more than a million fans following the team on social media.
Every night new fans traveled into Savannah from all over the country to see the show and watch the team play. We were blown away to hear story after story of fans driving hundreds of miles and even flying from countries near and far just to experience the Bananas. We are so grateful and proud of you for the tribe that has been built in this community.
National Media also went Bananas this summer. CBS, ESPN, and the Boston Globe all traveled into town to capture the magic of Bananaland. Their features along with USA Today and many more captured the hearts of people all over the country and created new fans to join Banana Nation.
Tyler Gillum was named CPL Coach of the Year as he led the team to the most impressive season on the field in franchise history. Starting the season 11-0 set the tone as the Bananas finished the season with 40 wins, the most of any team in the CPL.
Joe Miller was named Pitcher of the Year and 12 players joined him on the All-CPL team.
We believe when you have fun, you play better. This team quickly became the most fun team in baseball. The players celebrated more than ever before, including running through the crowd after scoring runs and doing the Bananaland Leap to join the fans after walk-off wins.
We saw new batter walk ups with players being led to the plate by the Banana Pep Band, players introducing themselves, and even having a Caddie escort a player to the plate.
We experienced mic’d up magic with Ty Jackson making a diving play while talking to the fans and Bill LeRoy predicting the exact play that would happen on the next pitch.
The fun continued with the postgame videos and Ripe Run Downs, led by Broadcast Entertainer Biko Skalla. He took the broadcast and the postgame recaps to another level and was deservedly named CPL Broadcaster of the year. From shower interviews to massage interviews, to singing interviews to finishing out the season under the covers interviewing Bill LeRoy, Biko did it all.
As Biko announced as the team rushed the field to celebrate the Championship, this was a “storybook finish to a storybook summer.” You showing up every night made this happen.
You are the reason our players love playing here. You’re the reason they love to dance, wear kilts, sign autographs, take pictures, create videos, and make memories all summer long. We get over one thousand requests from players to play in Savannah each year. That is because of you.
Many of you have sent in notes of encouragement and praise and you help our staff love what they do. You inspire them to continue to get better and dream bigger dreams for this team. You make us feel confident that this is just the beginning of what the Bananas can become.
Our goal is to continue to make baseball fun and strive towards being the most fan-centric company in the world. We have a strong vision for Grayson Stadium and Bananaland and to spread more fans first fun all over the world in the years to come.
So, for all your support for allowing us to chase those dreams, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We love you Banana Nation. Thanks again for everything & Keep Going Bananas!
Emily & Jesse Cole
& the entire Savannah Bananas Bunch
P.S. We are just getting started!