It’s fitting that the home of the St. Paul Saints hosted the biggest party in the Twin Cities over the weekend.
The pair of games at CHS Field in downtown St. Paul served as an unofficial passing of the torch between the local franchise founded on fun and the pop culture phenomenal taking the world by storm.
The St. Paul Saints walked so the Savannah Bananas could run.
Those familiar with both teams understand the connection.
In the early 1990s, the St. Paul Saints found their niche as an independent team entertaining fans out of Midway Stadium.
Though it wouldn’t be fair to the players to say the baseball took a backseat, the St. Paul Saints understood that in order to compete for eyeballs with the Minnesota Twins across the river, they had to offer more than the game itself.
To achieve that, the St. Paul Saints prided themselves on some of their gimmicks, which included having a live pig serve as the ball boy, duct tapping their intern to the outfield wall in the middle of the game, and starting the world’s largest pillow fight, among countless others that regularly went viral on social media.
The ultimate goal was making sure everybody in attendance walked away with a smile on their face.
It’s a similar vibe from the Savannah Bananas nearly 30 years later. Only they have taken it to the next level. Think the St. Paul Saints on steroids.
Maybe the most noticeable difference is the way their games are actually played. That’s because the Savannah Bananas have come up with their own set of rules designed to keep fans fully engaged.
It’s aptly named Banana Ball, and some of the changes include a time limit that ensures the game only lasts a couple of hours, a revamped scoring system, and an interesting wrinkle where a foul ball counts as an out if it’s caught by a fan.
That’s only the tip of the iceberg, however, as the Savannah Bananas truly separate themselves with the their trick plays, choreographed dance routines, and comedic sketches that make the game feel more like a Las Vegas show.
The smashing success of the Savannah Bananas paved the way for the Banana Ball World Tour, which also includes the Party Animals, the Firefighters, and the Texas Tailgaters. The spectacle needs to be be seen in person to truly appreciate its singularity across sports.
All of the teams were in action over the weekend as the Party Animals hosted the Texas Tailgaters at CHS Field in downtown St. Paul, while the Savannah Bananas hosted the Firefighters more than 1,000 miles away at Camden Yards in downtown Baltimore in a nationally-televised affair.
It was a complete sensory overload at CHS Field in downtown St. Paul, as every seat in the stadium was filled, and every inch of space overlooking the playing surface was occupied.
There were some stretches where the blaring music over the loud speakers made it feel like Lollapalooza. There were other stretches where fans singing along to “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey made it feel like biggest karaoke bar in the Twin Cities.
Meanwhile, the players on the Party Animals and the Texas Tailgaters kept the good vibes rolling throughout the game, whether they were riding a unicycle in the batter’s box, chugging a beer prior to their at-bats in the on-deck circle, or throwing hamburgers and hot dogs into the stands during a break in the action.
There was even some local flavor, as the the University of Minnesota dance team made a cameo, as did Minnesota Vikings mascot Viktor, leading a stadium wide Skol chant with the help of Party Animals outfielder Jake Skole.
It was impossible not to think of the St. Paul Saints in some of the moments of euphoria.
Though they have taken on a more formal approach since becoming the Triple A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins a couple of years ago, the St. Paul Saints and their kitschy antics helped make something like this possible.
Now it’s on the Savannah Bananas to keep it going.
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