Watch: Two-time World Series champion makes debut for Savannah Bananas
The Savannah Bananas, the quirky, over-the-top baseball club, are no strangers to occasionally adding former major league stars to their roster. On Wednesday night, they welcomed another in Red Sox great Johnny Damon.
Damon appeared as a pinch-hitter, grounding out weakly to third base in his only plate appearance. The two-time World Series champion didn't have the same burst out of the batter's box as he used to, but he still didn't look bad for a 49-year-old whose last professional at-bat came more than a decade ago.
A two-time All-Star, Damon recorded 2,769 hits, 235 home runs, 1,139 RBI and 408 stolen bases over 18 seasons with the Kanas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, Red Sox, New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Rays and then-Cleveland Indians.
The list of former pros to don the yellow jersey of the Bananas is long and winding, from Bill "Spaceman" Lee to 2007 Cy Young winner Jake Peavy. Now, they can add Damon to the list, but it's unclear whether Wednesday night's appearance was a one-off or if he'll turn up again.
The Bananas' brand of baseball is undoubtedly unique and only highlights the best parts of the game, which offers fans one heck of an experience, especially when they get to see the likes of Damon suit up again.
Fans from all over the country will get a chance to see the Bananas play this year, as the team recently kicked off its 2023 "Banana Ball World Tour," making the second stop of the tour this week in Daytona Beach, Florida. Overall, the Bananas' tour consists of 33 cities in 22 states over seven months while also making periodic returns to their home, Savannah, Georgia. At only $25 a pop, tickets are hard to come by, and the team's pre-order waitlist exceeded 500,000 back in January, per Front Office Sports.
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