The Savannah Bananas’ nationwide tour will visit Baltimore’s Camden Yards on Aug. 1 and 2, with both games airing on ESPN’s networks. The Bananas say the highly anticipated event — the Bananas put an entertaining spin on traditional baseball — has sold out (although ticket lottery winners have yet to be announced).

That’s not a surprise, given that 81,000 people just packed into Clemson’s Memorial Stadium last Saturday to watch the team play. Here are three things the game at Clemson’s football stadium, which set a Bananas attendance record, revealed about what to expect this summer at the Orioles’ home park.

A packed house with some first-time visitors: The Bananas say the games in Baltimore are sold out, although that comes with a small caveat. Lottery winners are expected to be revealed in early June, meaning who will attend the games is still to be determined. Camden Yards holds just under 46,000 fans, and from ticket lottery entrants, Bananas officials expect the venue to be filled to the brim for both exhibitions.

If Clemson’s game is any indication, a sizable chunk of the fans visiting the ballpark won’t be from Baltimore or even Maryland.

“It was a different vibe than a football Saturday,” Clemson athletic director Graham Neff told Sports Business Journal. “Namely, because about 40% of the ticket buyers were from out of state, we don’t have the exact customer data. The Savannah Bananas own that. But generally, it was a lot of first time to Clemson, first time to Memorial Stadium folks.”

The Bananas visit Washington and Philadelphia in late June and July, respectively, but the visit to Baltimore is the team’s only August stop on the East Coast. It’s likely fans from neighboring states make the trip to Baltimore.

A revenue-generating test case: Neff told SBJ that Clemson expects to receive between $400,000 and $600,000 in gross revenue from the one-off game. Neff also told the publication that Clemson might host more non-football games after the success of the Bananas exhibition.

The Maryland Stadium Authority agreed at the end of 2024 to take a smaller chunk of the revenue from the two games at Camden Yards, giving the Orioles a chance to better reap the rewards of hosting the quirky ballclub sometimes referred to as the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball. It’s unclear how much revenue the Orioles expect to generate with two games in their 46,000-seat venue, but hosting the games leads to revenue creation and local tourism for a stadium that would have otherwise sat empty with the Orioles on the road.

There’s optimism that Camden Yards will be home to more non-Orioles events in the future, helping bring positive attention and tourism to Maryland.

Guest appearances: While the Bananas have not announced any guests for the two games at Camden Yards, the visit to Clemson featured a couple notable appearances.

Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney led the Bananas onto the field and even gave the team a private pregame speech. Players and coaches raved about their time spent with Swinney, who has led the Tigers to a pair of national titles.

“His enthusiasm is insane,” Bananas director of baseball operations Adam Virant told GVL today. “When he spoke to our entire group, you could hear a pin drop. We were hanging on every single word. But then when he got in the bus with us to go around the stadium and run down that hill, he was just hyping us up, just like a kid. That guy is super special. I’m a Clemson Tiger for life, right here.”

Former Clemson running back C.J. Spiller was also involved in the festivities. Spiller played eight NFL seasons after four stellar seasons at Clemson that included earning All-American honors in 2009. He finished sixth in Heisman Trophy voting that fall.

Could any Ravens players or former Orioles be in attendance at Camden Yards in August? It’s a possibility.

“I am not sure if we will have any special guests, but we do always like to try and surprise local fans with familiar faces!” Sam Bauman, a Bananas spokesperson, told The Baltimore Sun via email.

Have a news tip? Contact sports editor Bennett Conlin at bconlin@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/BennettConlin.