SAVANNAH, GA. — Are they the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball? Perhaps they’re bigger. The Savannah Bananas are a phenomenon born in the Coastal Empire of Georgia, and in 2025 saw their broadcast TV debut on The CW Network. This year, more games are heading to the Nexstar-controlled broadcast TV hub.
For 2026, The CW will serve as the exclusive over-the-air home of six additional Banana Ball games. The first game between the Savannah Bananas and the Party Animals will air live on Sunday, May 10, starting at 2:30pm Eastern from Truist Park in Atlanta, home of the MLB Braves.
The CW will also air Banana Ball games from Kansas City, Milwaukee, Nashville and the Bananas’ home field — Grayson Stadium inside Savannah’s Daffin Park.
“We are thrilled to continue our partnership with the Savannah Bananas and bring the hottest ticket in sports directly into living rooms across the country,” said Mike Perman, Senior Vice President of Sports at The CW Network. “The dynamic brand of family-friendly entertainment mixed with impressive athleticism makes Banana Ball the perfect fit within our CW Sports portfolio.”
Jesse Cole, founder and CEO of the Savannah Bananas, said, “We loved bringing Banana Ball to fans on The CW in 2025. We can’t wait to grow our relationship by teaming up on some of our biggest shows in 2026 and delivering the ‘Greatest Show in Sports’ to millions of fans across the country.”
The Savannah Bananas were formed a decade ago. The first two years saw immediate success on the field. But it was a 2018 decision to create a fun alternative take on baseball that turned the Coastal Plain League (CPL) team into a viral, independent barnstorming phenomenon with a global fan base.
“Banana Ball” includes choreographed dances, epic scoring celebrations, flaming bats, and an array of other antics. The team has sold out every game at Grayson Stadium in Savannah since their inaugural season, prior to all of the wackiness. The team wouldn’t even exist if the Sand Gnats hadn’t relocated to Columbia, S.C., in 2015.
