TAMPA, Fla. — Correlle Prime was living a dream on Saturday.
He got to play a baseball game inside Raymond James Stadium as a member of the Savannah Bananas—a self-described “exhibition barnstorming baseball team.”
It was a full-circle moment for Prime. As a kid growing up in Plant City, he would go to Tampa Bay Buccaneers games in that same stadium with his late grandfather.
“He was a long-time lover of baseball,” Prime said. “My mom and I always joked if he found out we were playing baseball in Ray Jay, he’d be rolling in his grave.”
Prime still remembers the seats he and his grandfather sat in for every Bucs game — right below the pirate ship.
“This row, I think it’s 145, 13, seats 1 and 2,” he said. “I remember as a kid standing up on the chair trying to see the game with my grandfather. It was always an honor. He only had two tickets.”
On Saturday night, Prime had around 50 tickets for friends and family to watch the Bananas play their first game inside an NFL stadium.
“It’s surreal!” Debra Brooks, Prime’s mother, said. “Now, to see him playing here, it’s crazy!”
Prime was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 2012 out of Manatee High School. He played professional baseball for 14 years, bouncing around the minor leagues and an independent league. Just when he thought his baseball career might be over, the Bananas called.
“You come as yourself. Once you commit to being a Banana Ball player, you know what comes with it. You know you’re going to be asked to entertain. For me, I took it upon myself as a challenge,” Prime said. “I challenged myself in plenty of ways on the baseball diamond, athletically. I pretty much know what I can do there. I’m trying to take the next step forward and get out of my comfort zone and just be an entertainer.”
Prime even had the honor of being the starting pitcher in front of 65,000 fans on one unforgettable night.
“This Banana Ball is kind of awesome,” Brooks added. “He’s traveled all over the country playing minor league ball, but this, he’s having a blast, and he’s enjoying it, too.”
