17-Year Old Special Needs Superfan Brandon’s Big League Moment Lights Up Truist Park

Brandon is from Woodstock, Georgia, with special needs, and an obsession with the Savannah Bananas. Through a local sports-dream foundation, Brandon’s wish to be part of the Bananas for a day was coming true. Dubbed the team’s “newest teammate” and instant best friend, Brandon spent the weekend on the field and quickly became the heart of the show. 

During Saturday night’s game, he burst onto the scene during a mid-inning break, joining the Bananas’ choreographed dance crew in front of the pitcher’s mound. Music from Disney’s The Princess and the Frog swelled through the ballpark (one of Brandon’s favorite tunes), and he showed off some slick moves – a spin, a shimmy, and even the splits – that had the crowd roaring with approval. Players circled around hyping him up, and by the end of the song, 40,000 people were on their feet for a standing ovation as Brandon pumped his fists in triumph.

“Bran-don! Bran-don!” the fans chanted, as the ecstatic teen broke out his biggest grin. He high-fived Bananas owner Jesse Cole (resplendent in his trademark yellow tuxedo) and chest-bumped a Party Animals player twice his size. In a show filled with professional tricksters, it was this young superfan who stole the audience’s hearts. Brandon spent the rest of the game in the dugout, dancing on the top step every time the band played a new song, and even leading the crowd in a goofy version of the Macarena between innings. 

The Bananas players embraced him as one of their own – during the “Hey Baby” dance (a Bananas tradition), Brandon took center stage, flanked by players kneeling and swaying as his backup crew. It was pure, unfiltered joy. 

For a few minutes, a Major League stadium felt like a family backyard party, with a kid who loves baseball at the middle of it all. If you looked around, you could see even the hard-nosed Braves security personnel smiling and tapping their toes.