Two FIU alumni (one from Miami, one from Pembroke Pines) part of Savannah Bananas baseball fever
The hottest thing in baseball going today will be in South Florida.
Are you ready?
The Savannah Bananas are in town Saturday and Sunday at loanDepot Park in Miami.
BananaMania is a fun, entertaining brand of baseball, combining an actual game with choreographic skits, similar to the legendary internationally touring Harlem Globetrotters basketball experience.
Players display college and/or minor league baseball experience, including the Bananas opposition (The Firefighters and The Party Animals).
Two players from South Florida (both FIU baseball alum) are part of those teams competing against the Bananas during their 2025 nationwide tour.
Armando Becerra and Christian Dearman.
Becerra, born and raised in Miami, played high school ball at iMater Charter, and Dearman, a Pembroke Pines local, competed at West Broward High School.
My video interview with Becerra, who is an integral part of the very popular Savannah Bananas traveling baseball show.
Becerra (The Party Animals) will be competing against the Bananas at loanDepot Park. Deerman (The Firefighters) will be there, too, but not competing.
My video interview with Christian Dearman, who is also an integral part of the very popular Savannah Bananas traveling baseball show.
Becerra with the rival Party Animals will face the Bananas in his hometown on March 1-2, 2025 at loanDepot Park, home of the two-time MLB World Series Champion Miami Marlins.
It’s the Greatest Show on Dirt. The Savannah Bananas -- the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball -- are an exhibition barnstorming baseball team based in Savannah, Georgia. The team was founded in 2016 and has played there at Grayson Stadium since its inaugural season.
Until 2022, the Bananas competed as a collegiate summer baseball team in the Coastal Plain League’s (CPL) West division,[2] where they won three Petitt Cup Championships (2016, 2021, 2022). However, after the growth of their alternate “Banana Ball” format, the team transitioned entirely to exhibition games against their partner touring teams -- the Party Animals and the Firefighters -- similar to the decades-long format of basketball’s Harlem Globetrotters and their partner touring team the Washington Generals.
Becerra notes the Bananas, Party Animals, Firefighters play to win. They play hard, and the outcomes are not predetermined.
They practice baseball with baseball coaches and also practice skits with choreographers, making it an ultimate show/game experience. Players can pitch ideas (pun intended).
How popular and entertaining are the Bananas and their games/shows?
They have grown to selling out MLB ball parks, like loanDepot Park, and NFL stadiums, like Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
It’s amazing how far the Bananas have come. Baseball has always displayed a love for fun during its game. “The Clown Prince of Baseball” Max Patkin and the San Diego Chicken parlayed their entertaining antics into major prominence at major league and minor league baseball games throughout North America.
When the Bananas play, they enlist special guests to participate. Most are former major league players but not all.
Pro wrestling is entertainment-based, too, so it seemed fitting WWE legend John Cena was an honorary Banana for one game. Bananas pitcher Andy Archer incorporated the entrance music of TNA Wrestling Champion Joe Hendry into his entrance to the mound.
Becerra, 22, grew up in Miami, playing rec and travel baseball. He excelled at iMater Charter Academy High School in Hialeah, before taking his talents to South Carolina, signing with NCAA Division II Erskine College. A 6-foot outfielder, he made All-Conference Carolinas second team.
Becerra returned home for his senior season in 2024, starting for NCAA Division I Florida International University, where he became the second player in FIU history to hit for the cycle (at New Mexico State on 4/20/24). He earned CUSA All-Conference second team honors and graduated with a degree in psychology.
Through his connections at Erskine College, he received an opportunity with the Savannah Bananas in 2022. As he noted, he enjoys creating amazing experiences for fans and impacting kids who attend the games.
Dearman, 27, who was born and raised in Pembroke Pines in South Florida, played rec and travel baseball as a youth for West Pines Optimist. A pitcher, he excelled at West Broward High School for the late Coach Sergio Ambros and with the South Florida Elite travel baseball team.
After trying out for NCAA Division II Anderson University in Anderson, South Carolina, the 6-foot, 195-pound pitcher competed for Tallahassee Community College and then for NCAA Division I Florida International University in Miami. He graduated from FIU with a degree in Communication and then earned his master’s degree in sports business from St. Thomas University in Miami Gardens.
Through his connections at Tallahassee Community College, he received an opportunity with the Savannah Bananas. He is known as Mr. Electric and is a fan of “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair, who he sometimes emulates during the Savannah Bananas experience.
Visit https://thesavannahbananas.com/
This story was originally published February 27, 2025 at 5:08 PM.
