Banana Ball
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ☆ ☆
Banana Ball by Jesse Cole & Don Yaeger
Just watch the documentary. 🍌⚾️
This book could’ve been much better if it didn’t feel like half of it was Jesse Cole’s autobiography. While that’s not entirely surprising, as Banana Ball is still a relatively new phenomenon with limited history, it does mean a good portion of the book is spent recounting the life of its creator rather than diving deep into the sport itself.
In an unusual twist, the ESPN documentary series actually provides more insight into Banana Ball than this book does. Typically, it's the book that goes deeper than the film or series, but here, the opposite is true. To be fair, the two projects aren’t connected, but if you've seen the doc, you’ve already heard most of what the book has to offer. The only real “new” info is the team's decision to leave the Coastal Plain League and go all-in on Banana Ball. A cool detail, but likely included just because the book came out after that decision.
Ironically, the best part of the entire book comes before it even starts: in the author’s foreword. Co-author Don Yaeger shares that, as part of the writing process, he attended every single Banana Ball game in 2022. He talks about how social media clips, as entertaining as they are, can’t capture the full experience. The live games are even zanier, wilder, and more joyfully chaotic than anything he’d seen on a baseball field. 😵💫
He recounts taking his son to a game, and after all the fun and madness, his son turned to him and said: “Dad, please don’t take me to a regular baseball game ever again.” 🚫⚾️
That moment alone captures what Banana Ball is really about, something the book only occasionally manages to tap into.
