Savannah Bananas Redux & Tenants: Getting Stuck Until the Game is Over
Savannah Bananas Event Schedule:
- Early Merchandise Sales: 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM
- Pre-Game Party & Player Appearances: 2:00 PM
- “Before the Peel” Show: 3:00 PM
- Gates Open: 4:30 PM
- Show Starts: 6:30 PM
- First Pitch: 7:00 PM (ET)
As I had written a few months ago, my family had the “privilege” of buying tickets to the Savannah Bananas baseball game in Charlotte earlier this month. We had never been and the Charlotte community was whipped into a frenzy for this event at Bank of America Stadium. It was sold out for both nights in the 74,000-capacity stadium! Local social media was ablaze:
Were you one of the lucky ones who were able to buy tickets in the lottery that started 6 months prior???
Oh, you’ve never been?? It’s such an amazing experience! So funny! Fun for the whole family! Better get there early! The Pre-Game Party is not to be missed!
Now that my family had the “golden tickets”, logistics had to be sorted out. Real life things such as: how are we getting there (traffic will be a nightmare in Uptown), what time should we actually show up (2 PM is the start of the vaunted “Pre-Game Party”, but the game itself didn’t start until 7 PM), how long could the family with younger children last at this event (is 2 PM – 10 PM realistic?), and what and when were we eating?
Complicating the situation was a small disclosure at the bottom of the hype material:
The Pre-Game Plaza is a ticketed space, fans must have tickets to the game to access the Plaza. Re-entry after exiting the venue is prohibited.
I thought we had a chance of success if we could float in and out of the 5-hour pre-game activities. But reentry was apparently not an option. The “Pre-Game Plaza” was held on the closed down roads and area directly outside of Bank of America Stadium. We would have to go through security (bringing in no outside food and drink) and then stay on premises once admitted. Once we were in, we were in, until we were out for good.
After some serious thought, the executive decision was made that we would take the marketing at its word and get the fullest Savannah Bananas experience we could. We were going to go early by light rail and take it all in!
We made it to the stadium around 3 PM. Initially, there was much fanfare and excitement! Yellow everywhere, buzzing children, ear-to-ear smiles all around!
Then real life set in. It was really hot, the Pre-Game Plaza was mostly in the sun (unless you packed in where the stadium’s shadow offered some shade), the pre-game show on the stage was not visible for shorter folk (re: my kids), and it was not overly interesting to us. I looked at my watch showing 3:45 PM and wondered how we were going to make it until 6:30 PM. At least we were being paid to be there (wait a sec…).
It turns out the way one kills three disinterested hours in the hot sun is deflecting complaints and taking down multiple $15.00 drinks and burgers. With a captive audience (no pun intended), the only other choice was to leave and cut losses. In hindsight, I wish I had shown a little more discipline and did some research deeper than soaking in Savannah Banana marketing e-mails. Once we got there early and had our ticket scanned, we were stuck and needed to stick it out.
In a way (with my Charlotte property manager hat on), it reminded me of the importance of placing quality rental tenants.
Landlords have these nice houses that they spend a good amount of money preparing for tenants. Then the rental home goes on the market and prospective tenants fill out applications highlighting what good candidates they would be. If one cares to listen, tenants will tell you how they will pay on time and meticulously care for the home. And they proclaim they have the first month’s rent and security deposit in hand and are ready to move in ASAP once they get the go-ahead! Their marketing pitches can be very convincing as landlords have rental properties that are costing them money each vacant day.
But once the lease is signed and the tenants move in, there is “no reentry” until their tenancy is complete; once they are in, they are in. The landlord is stuck with them until lease expiration or they are forced out by eviction. The house could be taking heavy wear, misuse, and late/missing payments. For an investment in which the landlord should be making money, it can turn into one that is costs them even more. A rushed decision based on emotion and fear can turn out to be financially and mentally draining.
Much like prospective tenants, the Savannah Bananas proclaim they are the greatest show on Earth and will be one you never want to forget! But things do not always turn out as well as advertised. Smart landlords will make sure to do the requisite research and ensure it is a game with tenants they want to be stuck with!
Happy Landlording!
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Are Savannah Banana Tix & Great Rental Applicants Worth the Fuss?
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.”
(Matthew 13:44)
I was completely caught off-guard by the Savannah Bananas. More accurately, I didn’t understand the frenzy around their tickets.
It all started around 6 months ago when my wife casually asked me to enter the “Savannah Bananas Ticket Lottery”. I had no idea what she was talking about, but dutifully complied. I clicked on the website link and inputted my contact information. Done.
I ignored the marketing jargon at first:
“These aren’t your typical tickets”
“It’s the most fun you’ll ever have at a baseball game”
“You name it, we have it. Just be mentally prepared.”
From what I could ascertain, the Savannah Bananas were like the Harlem Globetrotters, except for baseball. Which is fine, but they didn’t look overly enticing to me.
However, the inputting of my information set off a 6-month e-mail marketing firework show about how wrong I was:
“You will only have one opportunity to buy tickets to the game of a lifetime- don’t miss out!”
“Confirm your contact information and double-check your log-in to make sure you can get into the website when ticket sales go live!!” (received 4 months prior to the actual lottery)
“Make sure your credit card information is preloaded so you don’t blow the chance of a lifetime!” (received 2 months before the lottery- I guess I need to make sure the card I put in there isn’t expired by then…)
Things got more intense as lottery day approached. “Reconfirm your log-in info!” “You’ll receive an e-mail 5 days from now that you will need to click on to keep in the lottery!” It seemed like these e-mails kept showing up requiring me to do
(and re-do) more work for the right to buy these tickets. Though annoying, on a certain level I was amazed at their potent marketing acumen that turned an apathetic ticket buyer into a pup willing to do whatever they asked.
The day approached and I was told I needed to be ready to buy them at exactly 12:30 PM on the day of my youngest son’s preschool picnic lunch. Of course, I succumbed and checked the time frequently during the event; I’d be ready to click on their website link at exactly the right time. When the time came, the link was slow to respond making me second-guess my log-in credentials (I know I should have reconfirmed them for the 5th time like recommended- dumb!!). But it finally went through and my credit card information was true as well. Four Savannah Banana upper deck tickets were now mine! The website congratulated me and culminated their storyline with the fact that I was now one of the luckiest 150,000 people in the Charlotte-Metro area.
Hooray? Whew!
Besides the cathartic value of getting this experience off of my chest, it made me think of what else is worth the effort that it took to secure these Savannah Banana tickets.
From a residential property management perspective, great rental tenants is the first thing that came to mind. This is the #1 goal of being a successful landlord. Great tenants pay on time, take care of the property, and make working with them a pleasure (I’m picturing a few of them right now!). And they are a gift that keeps on giving. Once they are secured, the benefits accrue for a year and usually much longer!
So when we see great rental applications come through (high credit scores, low debt, glowing landlord references, etc.), the next step is to make sure they don’t get away. Calling them, texting them, e-mailing, following-up, having after-hour conversations if necessary. We need them. The biggest difference between a good and bad property manager is tenant quality.
We’ll find out if the Savannah Bananas experience was worth the fuss of securing these tickets when we attend the game on June 6th. But smart landlords know that securing great rental tenants is always worth it!
Happy Landlording!
And the postscript courtesy Axios Charlotte:
Savannah Bananas tickets sold out in Charlotte in roughly five hours when they went on sale last week, a team spokesperson tells Axios.
Why it matters: Tickets sold for up to $65 originally, but resale prices start at $113 on StubHub, at $171 on Vivid Seats and $156 on SeatGeek.
Catch up quick: Ticket access was based on the Banana Ball Ticket Lottery, which closed last fall. If you were selected, you were assigned a time to have a chance to purchase tickets.
- Before tickets went on sale, the Bananas added a second night to their World Tour stop at Bank of America Stadium to respond to “overwhelming demand,” according to organizers.
My thought bubble: Even with the added night and assigned ticket purchase time, I still wasn’t able to grab tickets. 😔
(Axios Charlotte By Laura Barrero · Apr 16, 2025)
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