Baltimore is getting another dose of Banana Ball. Oriole Park at Camden Yards is set to host two games in the Savannah Bananas' barnstorming baseball league on July 2 and 3, 2027, with the Indianapolis Clowns taking the field against a rival squad as part of the circuit's ever-expanding national tour.
The Camden Yards dates were included among a wave of stadium announcements for the league's 2027 schedule, according to savannahnow.com, which reported that the Clowns will hit “other big stadiums like Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore” on those two July dates. It marks the second known appearance by a Banana Ball-affiliated team at the Orioles' home park, following a previously scheduled 2025 visit, as The Baltimore Sun reported.
That earlier trip to Camden Yards had the Savannah Bananas themselves facing off against the Firefighters on Aug. 1 and 2, 2025, according to baltimoresun.com. The same matchup and dates were also noted by pressboxonline.com, which described it as the Bananas' first appearance at the ballpark as part of their 2025 Banana Ball World Tour.
A League Built on Sellouts
The Savannah Bananas have grown well beyond their original roster. The organization, operating as Fans First Entertainment, now fields six independent professional teams under the Banana Ball Championship League umbrella, per thesavannahbananas.com. That expansion traces back to 2022, when the team left the Coastal Plain League to play Banana Ball year-round, the same source notes.
The track record since then has been eye-opening. The Bananas and their five spinoff teams have played nearly 600 games over the past decade, and every single one has sold out, according to the same source. In 2025 alone, the organization said it played in front of roughly 2 million fans across a 72-game schedule.
Looking ahead, the Bananas expect to draw 3.2 million fans during a 75-game tour spanning 45 states, the outlet's reporting indicates. The organization has also built out a broadcast footprint to match, with a 25-game television and streaming package on ESPN and Disney+, plus occasional broadcasts on truTV, the Roku Sports Channel and the Bally Sports Live App, per the same account.
Clowns and Party Animals Have Been Busy on the Road
The Indianapolis Clowns — described in reporting as a rival to the Savannah Bananas' Party Animals — have already made stops across the country this year. The two teams played a pair of sold-out games at Cleveland's Progressive Field, according to cleveland.com, with the Clowns and Party Animals facing off at 7 p.m. on back-to-back nights. That visit continued what the outlet called the organization's national tour.
Before Cleveland, the Party Animals and the expansion Clowns squared off June 10-11 at Greater Nevada Field in Reno, according to nevadasportsnet.com. That same Reno ballpark hosted three Banana Ball games between the Party Animals and the Texas Tailgaters in 2025, and all three sold out, drawing more than 30,000 fans into a stadium with a capacity of just 9,534.
What Makes Banana Ball Different
Part of the draw is the format itself. Banana Ball games run on a two-hour time limit, prohibit bunting and allow players to steal first base, according to cleveland.com's earlier reporting on the Cleveland series. The league was created by Savannah Bananas owner Jesse Cole, the same report notes, and has been described elsewhere as a Harlem Globetrotters-style barnstorming approach to baseball, per nevadasportsnet.com, which also noted that fan-caught foul balls count as outs and scoring runs by inning rather than by total runs.
The novelty has traveled well beyond minor-league parks. The Bananas also sold out Nationals Park in Washington for a series against the Firefighters, according to thebanner.com. With Camden Yards now on the books again for July 2027, Baltimore fans will get another chance to see whether the format's sellout streak continues at their own ballpark.
