A Richmond baseball star returns to town this weekend – with Banana Ball
Jackie Bradley Jr. was named the top player at the College World Series, then went on to win a Major League Baseball championship with the Boston Red Sox.
This Friday and Saturday, he'll take the field in a very different context at CarMax Park.
Bradley, now 36, is the star of the Indianapolis Clowns, part of the rapidly growing "Banana Ball" empire.
The league, spun off from the popularity of the Savannah Bananas baseball team, now features six teams which tour the country, mixing baseball and entertainment.
Laura Finaldi
Richmond will host two games in the traveling series, with each starting at 7 p.m. Both games are sold out, and the league does not allow the resale of tickets. The games will be streamed on YouTube as the Clowns take on the Firefighters.
Fans should arrive early to guarantee a parking spot, as the lot has been filling up ahead of the start time during sold-out Flying Squirrels games. Street parking is also available in the nearby neighborhoods, including Scott's Addition.
Pregame festivities begin at 4:30 p.m. outside the stadium before the gates open at 5:30 p.m.
For fans without tickets, some of the players will be making a promotional appearance at Dunkin' Donuts 10390 Ridgefield Pkwy on Saturday morning from 9 to 11 a.m..
CarMax Park opened earlier in April as the new home of the Richmond Flying Squirrels, and has hosted 12 baseball games to date.
Michael Phillips
The Indianapolis Clowns are a new team this year in Banana Ball, created in tribute to a pioneering Negro Leagues team. Bananas founder Jesse Cole said he was inspired by a tour of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City.
Contact Michael Phillips at mphillips@richmonder.org.
