By: Norm Ordaz
Man, my hip hurts. It’s going to be a long day. Mayhem, train wreck, chaos. What I witnessed last night as the Savannah Bananas and the Party Animals invaded Fresno, can be described as, mayhem, train wreck, and chaos. All beautifully designed. As previously stated, man, my hip hurts.
When the Bananas released their World Tour schedule, they had a handful of California dates. July 27th in Fresno. I thought, hey, July 27th is my birthday. When my wife, Meg, asked me if I wanted to go how, could I say no? So, the planning began. It ended up as a combined Christmas and birthday gift. Tickets were not cheap. In fact, I’ve never paid that much for a ticket. Happy birthday, big guy. I didn’t think I would ever pay that much for a ticket, but I had to pull the trigger and I was so glad I did!
We left Oregon on July 25th and had a nice trip down to Fresno. We checked in to our hotel and started to get ready for the game. We found a parking spot across from the Chukchansi Park (home of the Fresno Grizzlies, Rockies Single A affiliate). There were a ton of people making their way to the gates of the stadium. I’ve been to many baseball games over the years. So, I’m pretty experienced in getting around a ballpark. I had no clue on what was about to happen. Mayhem, train wreck, and chaos. All beautifully designed by owner of the Bananas Jesse Cole. I got my dinner ordered from a Taco Truck. We stood there to soak in the environment. The Bananas pep band was playing. Bananas Coach/player Maceo was dancing on the stage.
And there he was! He was, the head Banana himself, Jesse Cole. I made my way over to him and asked for a picture. Jesse was down to earth guy. We chatted a little and went our separate ways. The Chuc holds about 10,650 fans. As we made our way into the stadium it was packed. Most, dressed in Banana gear, including myself. We found our seats (it was open seating). There was a buzz in the stadium. In fact, it was electric from the moment we walked in. The best way to describe it was, playoff atmosphere. Man, my hip hurts.
The pregame ceremonies were going on. Introductions the eating of the banana, the Lion King presentation of the baby. The on-field host went through the Banana ball rules. It’s game time. Oh, one of my favorites is in the house tonight, Eric Byrnes but where is he? They posted the 2-hour time limit in the scoreboard. The game is on. The game is fast moving. A ton of action. The first foul ball is caught by a fan. That’s an out in Banana ball. At times, I caught myself in awe of what was happening. Mayhem, train wreck, chaos. All beautifully designed.
I’ve been to thousands of baseball games. Nothing like this though. My favorite part of the game was, the Bananas version of Take Me Out to the Ballgame. Which is, everyone turning on the lights on their phones, and shutting off the stadium lights and played “Yellow” by Coldplay. It was one of the best moments I’ve ever been a part of at a ballgame.
The Bananas walked it off in the bottom of the ninth on a hit by longtime Banana Bill Leroy. What a way to finish off the night. A 3-2 win by the Bananas. It’s hard to find a comparison on the level of play. These guys can play ball. All while walking on stilts, tumbling, catching balls behind their backs and between their legs.
We finally got to see Eric Byrnes and he even got a base knock. Man, I love Byrnes. If you ever have the opportunity to catch the Bananas, do so. Well worth every penny. Man, my hip hurts. But I’m smiling from ear to ear this morning.