Noah Niznik is going bananas.
Niznik, 23, of Imperial leaves for Savannah, Ga., next month to start training with the Savannah Bananas, a professional baseball team known as much for their on-field antics as for their proficiency with the bat or glove.
After leaving the Coastal Plain League – a summer league of top college players – seven years ago, the Bananas reinvented themselves with “Banana Ball,” their name for barnstorming exhibition games that emphasize fun with a capital ‘F.’ The Bananas and their companion team, the Party Animals, venture coast-to-coast to entertain sellout crowds from February through September. In their 2023 ‘World Tour,’ they played 87 games in 33 cities across 21 states. Even the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum put up a display about them.
Niznik worked out for the Bananas management in Dallas in October and signed a contract with them in November. Spring training begins in Savannah in mid-January.
“I would describe them as fun,” Niznik said, similar in spirit to the Harlem Globetrotters of basketball fame.
“The only thing scripted is the dancing and singing,” Niznik said. “The games are real.”
So what makes the Bananas unique? Have you ever seen players carried onto the diamond on a surfboard, or pitch wearing stilts, or wear a kilt, or belt out a song, or dance to the latest Taylor Swift melody?
Of course, the Bananas wear bright yellow uniforms, and their owner, Jesse Cole, always sports a yellow tuxedo and top hat. He’s appeared on national TV shows like Good Morning America (ABC) to promote his zany band, which has millions of followers on its social media platforms. Sports has always been a form of entertainment, but Banana Ball blurs the lines into a single stream of comic delights.
Niznik, a lefthanded pitcher, never considered himself an introvert anyway.
“There’s a lot of dancing and trick plays,” he said. “All throughout my career I’ve been known for dancing in the dugout, or doing a shimmy on the mound.
“It’s about being able to still play baseball. There’s a lot of former college and pro guys on the team. They want to see if you’re able to go outside of your comfort zone with the tricks. I’m excited to get to be a part of it. There are sold-out crowds for every game. I’ll be traveling the country.
“I’ve known about (the Bananas) since they were a collegiate summer-ball team. I’ve seen them all over social media and their recruiting coordinator reached out to me.”
Niznik said he chose the private-school route for high school, to get a jumpstart on his baseball career. So instead of attending Seckman, he enrolled at Vianney in Kirkwood. Good move. He finished 8-0 in 2018 and was the winning pitcher as the Griffins defeated Columbia Hickman to capture the Class 5 state championship.
“(Going to Vianney) came down to baseball,” Niznik said. “Scott Brown was Vianney’s head coach. My cousin had played for him at CBC and I’d heard about him.”
Niznik attended Southeast Missouri State University in Cape Girardeau on a baseball scholarship and earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communication/public relations. In his senior season last spring, Niznik led SEMO in innings pitched with 85 2/3. He averaged a strikeout per inning and was 6-7 with a 3.99 earned run average. As a true freshman in 2019, he led the Redhawk starters with the fewest walks (17) and a 3.63 ERA in 62 innings pitched.
When he’s ready to hang up the glove, Niznik said he wants to pursue a career in commercial real estate.
“I learned that if you’re good enough, you’ll play,” Niznik said. “I was a starter every year. This past year, I was the Friday-night guy. It was my best year. I made a lot of memories there.
“I’ve always been able to strike out batters. Going back to when I was 7, I’ve had the same pitching coach. I focused on mechanics and throwing strikes, and if you do that, you’ll find yourself on the field quite a bit.”
Each of the Bananas has a digital baseball card posted on the club’s website, thesavannahbananas.com. On the front of his card, Niznik is holding a banana like a phone. On the back, he notes he can juggle and do a back flip and loves singer Mariah Carey – useful skills as a Banana.
Like most people Niznik’s age who’ve enjoyed a successful athletic career, the desire to compete continues to drive his dream of playing professionally for a more conventional club. He said he’s drawn interest from some Independent League teams, though none yet from the one area team in that circuit, the Gateway Grizzlies in Sauget, Ill. The River City Rascals, based in St. Charles, folded in 2019.
Undrafted out of SEMO, Niznik decided to split with the Bananas.
“Anybody who plays this game long enough (understands why) I want to play as long as I can,” he said. “All of the entertainment is for the fans, but when the game is being played, it’s competitive baseball.”