The year is 2025 and the Savannah Bananas have played in front of 250,000 fans from Savannah to California and everywhere in-between. Grayson Stadium has been wonderfully updated while keeping the historic and simplistic design intact. People are visiting Savannah year-round from all over the world in hopes of seeing the most entertaining team in sports. Does this sound too good to be true? It may be, but it is just a small part of the newly-crafted ‘2025 Vision’ laid out by the Savannah Bananas and their team.
When the Bananas took over Grayson Stadium in 2016 after professional baseball had died, the focus was to re-energize the community with a simple approach: Fans First. Entertain Always. What started as a quirky – and polarizing – name, turned in to an international phenomenon with every game now being sold out and Bananas fans all around the world. From winning games in kilts, to having the first ever Dancing First Base Coach, capturing a league championship, and hiring the Dad Bod Cheerleading Squad, the Bananas have been determined to bring non-stop fun to baseball.
“It’s been an amazing first five years here in Savannah, but we’re just getting started. We want to continue to challenge the traditional baseball experience and create something for our fans and team that they can’t get from anyone else,” said Jesse Cole, Bananas Owner.
The “2025 Vision” for the Bananas includes concepts like a Bananas Brewery and 1926 Speakeasy Bar at Grayson Stadium. It lays out the idea for the team to travel on the road and take the baseball circus to other cities during the Spring. It references having no offseason and hosting seasonal games in Savannah like Oktoberfest, Halloween Game, Fansgiving, Christmas Game, New Year’s Eve Game, and a St Patrick’s Day Weekend Series. It declares the team will consistently be named “Best Place to Work” and bring together the best people to serve the fans.
Continued Cole, “We believe millions of people are searching for fun, joy, and belonging. It is our moral obligation to bring the Bananas Experience to more people and have more people to come to Grayson Stadium to enjoy that fulfillment.”
Fans should expect continuous announcements to see the “2025 Vision” come to life. The 2nd Annual Fansgiving game is already sold out and plans are being made for a potential Spring Series. The team extended their lease on Grayson Stadium with the City of Savannah for at least 5 years and most likely 10 years. The City has set aside $2.5 million dollars from the upcoming SPLOST which will be used to update Historic Grayson Stadium.
For the full “2025 Vision” document, go to www.thesavannahbananas.com/2025vision and read everything the team sees happening in the future.