Savannah Bananas perform at Sahlen Field in Buffalo

She belted out a rendition of “Pure Imagination,” the song Willy Wonka sang as he led his guests to the golden ticket in the Chocolate Factory. But Friday afternoon, that custom-made, golden royal version welcomed a traveling phenomenon that has taken baseball by storm and is making its first visit to Buffalo.

“Welcome to Bananaland, everybody!” she announced to the hordes of fans who sweated eagerly for the start of an afternoon that wasn’t all about baseball. Friday was the first of a three-game series showcasing the wacky brand of baseball the Bananas have brought across the country as part of their 2024 Banana Ball World Tour.

The reception for Princess Potassia was low-key compared to what would happen in the hours that followed. Sahlen Field is home to the Triple-A Toronto Blue Jays, but this weekend it became a rock concert venue, a three-ring circus and a gold-hued diamond extravaganza.

For Alex Ziegler, Friday was another night to do it with dozens of his closest friends.

“The best part?” said the infielder nicknamed Ziggy. “Being with those guys. Everybody says that, but you’re with those guys and there’s so much love.”

The Bananas are a dynamic rock band and before they came to town, Zack Phillips put out a sort of clarion call on social media.

“Buffalo NY for the weekend! Know a good place to get Buffalo wings?” the Bananas thrower wrote on his Threads account.

It’s like asking Yogi Bear for advice on the best picnic spots. Phillips was inundated with responses — 85, at last count Friday afternoon.

His first stop: Duff’s, where he found tangy, spicy and sweet wings, very different from the wings he ate growing up in Little Rock, Arkansas.

“I’m a big fan of Buffalo wings, so if I order wings at home, it’s always Buffalo,” Phillips said. “When I got Buffalo wings here, it was different. It was a different color, but it was so good! It was a good spice. Back home, wings are just spicy. I think I ate 16 wings here.”

Everywhere Phillips goes, he asks the same question: Where’s the best place to eat local cuisine? He’s asked in Columbus and Nashville and discovered barbecue in Indianapolis.

That’s part of what makes Phillips so excited about the opportunity to see the world. He played in the Kansas City Royals’ minor league system but didn’t realize the gritty side of baseball until he joined the Bananas.

“Being able to travel and just have fun, and knowing you’re going to have fun, it’s real baseball but it’s also entertainment,” he said. “Coming from the minor leagues, it was just about going out and playing baseball. So it’s a dream come true.”

As the Bananas reached first base, they didn’t see the traditional first base coach. Instead, Maceo Harrison stood on his head while shaking his tail feather to Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It).”

Harrison has a way of describing himself: “I’m just a vibration.”

About three and a half hours before first pitch, Harrison performed an elaborate routine with a player to James Brown’s 1985 hit “Living In America” ​​outside the Buffalo Bisons’ clubhouse, which had been remodeled to accommodate the Bananas.

As Harrison settled into the dugout later in the afternoon, he described his influences as a dancer and what he incorporates into his style.

Harrison explained how his training in martial arts and capoeira, a Brazilian discipline that includes dance and acrobatics, has been incorporated into some of his routines. He has launched into an impromptu moonwalk, in homage to superstar Michael Jackson. And, he said, he has never played baseball.

“I’ve done everything but that,” Harrison said. “I played basketball. I played football. I was a cheerleader. One time I started dancing in sophomore year, and I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s what I want to do.’”

Harrison’s mood was perfectly suited to the Bananas’ entrance in Buffalo, which was worthy of a party, a dance party. A little girl led the crowd, already pumped up by the Bananas’ energetic introductions, in a series of pirouettes, turns, shimmies and shakes to get themselves even more pumped up.

Then a familiar chant rang out: “Shout!” More appropriate for a Bills game at Highmark Stadium, but loud enough to whip fans into an even greater frenzy.

A nine-inning game is only a small part of the fun of Banana Ball. It quickly turns into a feast for the senses, and it’s easy to get lost in the experience’s side attractions.

Between the first and second innings, several players went into the stands to hand out yellow roses to eager fans. Savannah’s mascot, the yellow banana, Split, lay down in the center of the field during the final innings.

When one of the Bananas jumped from a ladder over home plate and onto a folding table — a staple of Buffalo celebrations — the expected crowd of 16,000 roared deafeningly.

Blink and you might miss something animated on the field, like a lead runner at second base wearing a motorcycle helmet. That’s Flash Tha Kid, aka Malachi Mitchell, the son of former Olympic gold medal-winning sprinter Dennis Mitchell.

Bananas shortstop Ryan Cox led off the second inning by catching a ground ball from behind, and first baseman Eric Jones caught Cox’s throw with an effortless catch from behind. Then center fielder DR Meadows backflipped after catching a fly ball for the second out.

Blink again and the game moves from the second to the seventh inning. But you can’t miss pitcher Dakota “Stilts” Albritton, who entered the game in relief on stilts, making him nearly 11 feet tall.

Or the dance. Between the second and third innings, Harrison led four players, including Ziegler, and they did their best moves to “Living In America.” The final twist was actually a backflip by Harrison, who fell into a quartet of Bananas who saluted him in adulation — and cooled him down on a muggy, 84-degree night.

“I tell these guys all the time that I’m here to help you look good, even if you’re out of your comfort zone,” Harrison said. “You’re baseball players, but everybody can dance. You just have to find your rhythm.”

It’s easy to say the Bananas found their groove in Buffalo with a 4-1 win over the Firefighters in 95 minutes.

Most people probably don’t remember the final score. But they will remember the roses handed out by the players. The marching band that led the Bananas into the stadium.

And this jump into a folding table.