Left-handed pitcher Hayden Harris recently made his MLB debut with the Atlanta Braves, holding the Chicago Cubs scoreless for one inning in a 4-3 defeat. Before the southpaw was pitching at the major league level, though, he was entertaining fans with the Savannah Bananas. Harris recently joined MLB Network Radio to discuss baseball's latest phenomenon.
“It was awesome being able to go down to Savannah,” Harris said before explaining that he needed something to do ahead of his upcoming college baseball season at the time. “The coordinator from the Bananas kind of called me and he was like… ‘We'd like you to come play for us… We gotta get you in the last game of the year so that you can be eligible for the playoffs. So I got in on the last day of the year.”
For those who may not be aware, the Bananas — although technically a baseball team — operate in their own manner. They have different rules when it comes to the baseball element of the sport, while they offer various promotions and other things to excite fans.
“Every single jersey that game had everyone's face plastered across it,” the Braves pitcher continued. “I was too late to get my face plastered across it so it was just all Bananas and whatever my number was. Ended up being NIL night where we would auction off our jerseys and we would actually get the money and they were making it a big deal… It was the first NIL from summer ball or something that players got paid.
“And since mine didn't have my face on it, you know, fans loved it. They bid up to like, I don't know, it was like $600 bucks or something like that. So, as a college kid, you get $600 bucks cash and it's like, ‘Wow, this is sick!'”
The journey ultimately led Harris to the Braves down the road. Although he admitted he didn't get involved in much of the dancing (the Bananas feature a lot of dancing at games), he did enjoy pitching in the playoffs with the team.
“Pitching in the playoffs and everything was dope. You know, we got to win the championship, took some cool pictures and stuff. I didn't do too much of the dancing or anything like that.”
