Meet Rhode Island Baseball Star and Now, Savannah Banana - Trystan Levesque
Meet Rhode Island Baseball Star and Now, Savannah Banana - Trystan Levesque
GoLocal LIVE has conducted more than 8,000 interviews that have included world leaders, governors, Emmy and Grammy Award winners, but now, it has added the highest-level VIP — a new member of the Savannah Bananas baseball team.
Recent University of Rhode Island graduate and 5th-round draft pick of the Savannah Bananas Trystan Leveque appeared on GoLocal LIVE on Tuesday. He was an all-Atlantic-10 pitcher for the Rams, and in January, he will report to Georgia to join what may be the most popular baseball team in America.
Levesque discussed his journey from Kingston to Banana Ball.
“So we were finishing up our college season, and as every kid's dream, you want to go play professionally, and so I was chasing that over the summer and trying to give it one final push to go play some professional baseball. I was playing in the MLB draft league, traveling all over the country, driving all over the country, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Trenton, New Jersey. I was a little bit everywhere,” said Levesque.
Recruited Via Instagram
“So that was kind of like what I was doing this summer to try and get myself drafted. And during the summer, I was actually reached out to, through Instagram, by Barry Aldridge, who is the recruiter for the entire league of all of Banana Ball. And he asked to hop on a call with me and talk to me about the possibilities and the impact that they make for all the fans and everything,” said Levesque.
Jackie Bradley, Jr. Joins Banana Ball
“I absolutely fell in love with it. It is exactly what I wanted to do. It has the aspect of playing very high-level baseball, and I feel like a lot of people don't fully understand that. They're kind of thinking, ‘Oh, they're very good entertainers.’ And they don't understand like, Hey, listen. We have some serious baseball players in this league. We have ex-minor leaguers and even some pro players. I'm sure you saw, we just had Jackie Bradley Jr. join the league, which is absolutely incredible,” added Levesque.
Bradley was a star center fielder for the Boston and won a Golden Glove as the best defensive center fielder.
How Big Is the Game — 5 Million on the Waiting List
The Bananas have sold out across the country, and in 2026, they sold 101,000 tickets for a game at the University of Tennessee’s football stadium, but that record has already been topped, according to Levesque.
“So, at Texas A&M at College Station, their football field will sell out for 102,000 people. We will be playing the Texas Tailgator, which is amazing,” said Levesque.
Dance Moves - Back Flip
To understand Banana Ball is to appreciate not only the high level baseball but the entertainment value of acrobatic plays and a near endless number of singing and dance acts.
Levesque said he is working hard to master the entertainment aspect of the game.
“I am working on the dance moves. We're a little stiff at first. We're going to get there, though. Throughout college, I took my baseball so seriously, like all the time, and I will do the same dedication to this. As serious as I was about baseball, I will be super serious about this, and I will learn every dance move I possibly can. Working on a back flip as a pitcher, which will be interesting,” said Levesque.
“And we're working on everything else, too. So, I will definitely find a way to be the most entertaining Banana Ball player that I possibly can be,” said Levesque, a Connecticut native.
Dedicated to the Fan
In an era of sports betting, NIL money, and near-endless controversies, Banana Ball has stood out as something remarkably different.
“I think that what they are creating is the most wholesome special experience that a fan could possibly go to. The entire game, the show that they put on, it's all dedicated to the fans,” said Levesque.
The Savannah Bananas are playing two games in the summer of 2026 at Gillette on August 28 and 29th.