Mo’ne Davis joins Savannah Bananas tour on new team coached by a former Phillies star. Will she play in Philly?
Over a decade after making history with the Taney Dragons at the Little League World Series, the Philadelphia native is continuing her baseball journey. With Banana Ball, she’ll play on a team inspired by the Harlem Globetrotters of the Negro Leagues.
Mo’ne Davis is taking her talents to Banana Ball.
Davis, a Philadelphia native who rose to national fame after becoming the first girl to win a game and pitch a shutout in the Little League World Series in 2014, signed with the Indianapolis Clowns of the Banana Ball Championship League, the organization announced Wednesday.
It’s not the only league Davis has joined recently. She was a first-round pick in the Women’s Professional Baseball League’s inaugural draft in November. But before she takes the field in the WPBL, fans will see Davis in a slightly different setting with the Clowns.
The Clowns are one of two new teams this season in the six-team Banana Ball league, headlined by the Savannah Bananas. The Bananas took their variant of baseball, which has a set of rules that prioritizes showmanship and fan engagement, on a tour of ballparks across the country in 2023. The Bananas since have expanded their two-team Harlem Globetrotters-style tour into a six-team barnstorming league.
The Clowns are partnered with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Mo., “to help preserve the history of the Indianapolis Clowns and bring their legacy to fans all over the country.” Founded in the 1930s as the Ethiopian Clowns, the original franchise won three Negro American League titles, boasted players like Hank Aaron, and was a trailblazing, barnstorming baseball squad.
Davis, 24, is listed as a right-handed pitcher and outfielder for the Clowns. She is listed as a center fielder for the Los Angeles WPBL team, which selected her 10th overall in the league’s draft. More than a decade removed from her dominance in Williamsport, Pa., it is unclear whether Davis intends to take the mound in the WPBL, but she will return to the rubber in Banana Ball.
Although it made stops at Citizens Bank Park in 2024 and 2025, the Banana Ball tour will not come to Philadelphia this year, meaning Davis won’t get a homecoming game. The tour will come to minor league ballparks in Scranton, Allentown, and Wilmington, but those games will not feature the Clowns.
Davis’ time with the Clowns will have one Philadelphia connection, however, as the Bananas brought on former Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard to serve as the “prime-time” coach for the Clowns.
» READ MORE: Mo’ne Davis will make her return to baseball
The Clowns have already begun their season. The team will play a two-game series against the Loco Beach Coconuts on Friday and Saturday in Charleston, S.C.
The Banana Ball season will conclude with championship games Oct. 1-4 in Savannah, Ga.
The WPBL’s inaugural season will last seven weeks. All games will be played at Robin Roberts Stadium in Springfield, Ill. The four-team league’s schedule will begin on Aug. 1 and will conclude with playoffs in September.