Banana Ball was started in 2018 by Jessee Cole in Savannah, Georgia. It was started with a desire to redesign the game of baseball to be a more wacky and fast-paced game. The idea was to keep fans in seats the entire game by constantly entertaining them. To achieve this, they created new rules for the game that help games go at a quicker pace and stop blowout games from occurring.
These rules include having the game run on a points system rather than just home runs. A point for an inning is scored by the team who got the most runs during that inning and if the second team up scores more than the first, the inning ends and that team is awarded a point. Another rule is that batters cannot step out of the batter box and mound visits are prohibited. These are put into place to prevent stalling. Walks have also been updated to be known as “ball-four sprints” which allows the batter to run the bases after ball four and the fielders are unable to get them out until everyone in the in and out fields have touched the ball. This makes a mundane part of the game an exhilarating affair to watch.
One of the more important rules that has been added is that if a fan catches a foul ball, it is considered an out. This encapsulates the essence of what this new sport wants to do: put the fans first. This goal is also reflected in the ways to view Banana Ball: on certain streaming platforms or completely free on their YouTube channel. Their social media numbers are crazy, with their TikTok and Instagram having millions of followers and views. Ticket prices are geared towards making the sport accessible with tickets ranging from $35 to $125. Unfortunately, getting tickets is difficult because they are always sold out.
The future of this sport is looking bright. In 2026, there will be the first Banana Ball Championship League. This will include the four current main teams: the Savannah Bananas, the Party Animals, the Firefighters, the Texas Tailgaters and two new teams which will be announced this month.
This sport is not for everyone, though, because it changes the game of baseball to be sillier which many fans of baseball have criticized. It can be jarring when players and umpires are doing flips during and after plays or celebration dances after runs are scored. The rules differing from baseball can make it foreign to those who like the way that baseball is played. For those who may not enjoy watching traditional sports, this is a fun new alternative to watch. Everyone on the field tries to one-up each other in comical ways that lead to a lot of fun plays that take baseball to new lengths.
