On Friday night, the Savannah Bananas played the first of two sell-out games from Bank of America Stadium—the home of the Carolina Panthers. And before the first pitch was thrown, team creator and owner Jesse Cole addressed the 74,000 fans in attendance.

The Savannah Bananas are making baseball fresh and entertaining, packing out Bank of America Stadium with their Banana Ball World Tour stop in Charlotte. Their approach mixes the sport with fun, enforcing a two-hour time limit, integrating choreographed dances, trick plays, and even fan-caught foul outs.

Eric Jones grew up a Carolina Panthers fan, attending games at Bank of America Stadium. This weekend the Charlotte native will play in front of 150,000 fans in that very stadium with his Savanah Bananas teammates.