2018 Mohawk Tanner Allen (Mississippi State) was the first pick in the second round of the Banana Ball Player Draft and the ninth player drafted overall, going to the brand-new Loco Beach Coconuts.
Before Banana Ball took off; the Savannah Bananas began as a summer collegiate baseball team just like us. In fact, pitcher Zach Cable played for the Bananas in the Coastal Plain League before playing for the Mohawks in 2021.
Since changing their format, 3 former Mohawks have appeared in Banana Ball games. 2002 Mohawk Hunter Pence played in a game for the Bananas 2 years ago and had a walk-off hit. 2014 Mohawk Ryan Clark pitched against the Bananas 2 years ago as a member of the Charleston Dirty Birds and struck out a batter on stilts, and just this past month, current Mohawk Brandon McCraine went viral showing off his Michael Jackson dance moves at first base as the Bananas played the Auburn Tigers.
Tanner Allen hit .267 in 23 games for the Mohawks in 2018 with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 3 home runs, 18 RBI and 17 runs scored.
In 2021, he led Mississippi State on their National Championship run in the College World Series and was named the SEC Player of the Year, consensus All-American and ABCA National Player of the Year after batting .383 his senior year.
The Miami Marlins selected Tanner Allen in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB Draft. He played 4 seasons in the minors and topped out at Double-A before being released following the 2024 season.
The Loco Beach Coconuts join the Indianapolis Clowns as the two new franchises in Banana Ball, joining the Savanna Bananas, the Party Animals, the Firefighters, and the Texas Tailgaters. The Coconuts will now look to Tanner Allen to be one of the faces of the new franchise.
The Coconuts will kick their inaugural season off at Dick Howser Stadium home to Florida State on February 26 against the Firefighters. August 7-9 will be the Coconuts first time playing in a Major League stadium as they play the Savanna Bananas at Target Field in Minneapolis, home of the Twins. Then they play the Bananas at Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals August 21-22. August 28-29 the Coconuts will move to an NFL stadium and play the Bananas at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, MA, home of the New England Patriots.
The Banana Ball Player Draft continues tomorrow and 2022 Mohawk Nolan Lamere is still on the board.