Jackie Bradley Jr. says the hardest part of his new life in Banana Ball is not the hitting or even the fielding. It is the dancing. The former Major League Baseball outfielder said Wednesday on SportsCenter that he is trying not to be the worst dancer while adapting to a game that asks him to entertain as much as he performs.
That matters because Bradley spent 11 seasons building a reputation on defense, not choreography. Now he plays Banana Ball for the Savannah Bananas' Indianapolis Clowns, and he said the adjustment has been real: choreographed dances, fan interaction face to face and a different rhythm from the one he knew in MLB. He also said he is trying to put smiles on people's faces and make their Banana Ball experiences great.
The numbers show why the move has drawn attention. Bradley, 36, ranked second among all hitters on the Banana Ball World Tour with a.400 batting average. He had 55 hits and 27 RBIs in 38 games, and on April 10 he became the third player in Banana Ball history to hit for the cycle against the Loco Beach Coconuts. The Clowns selected him with their first pick in the Banana Ball player draft, and he became the first former MLB player to commit to participating full-time in Banana Ball.
For Bradley, the shift is not just about a new uniform or a new schedule. Banana Ball is built on non-traditional baseball and viral choreography, and he is being asked to fold that showmanship into a career defined by outfield excellence and a Gold Glove standard. He said backflips while catching a ball are difficult at 36, even though he has always known how to backflip. The challenge, he said, is that once he focuses on the ball, he can forget the flip and bail halfway.
He said he is working on it, but he has been holding off for now. The season is warming up, though, and that leaves the next question hanging over the most unusual part of his transition: how far Bradley can push the act before the act starts to look effortless.
