The Savannah Bananas busted a myth White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf has been spreading

The Savannah Bananas packed Rate Field this weekend with their unique approach to the game.

The Bananas have become a cultural phenomenon by tapping more into the entertainment side of baseball. Whether it is having a pitcher throw on stilts, fielders doing flips before catching the ball, or having choreographed impromptu dance routines, the Bananas are proving that baseball is not boring.

They have also leaned into celebrity guest appearances that have stirred up nostalgia and created regular viral moments. That was all on display this weekend at Rate Field.

Banana Ball on the South Side of Chicago

The Bananas did a great job of rewarding the Chicagoans who came out by bringing back some White Sox legends.

Mark Buehrle returned to Chicago to throw a couple more pitches on the mound where he became a legend. He threw to fellow South Side legend, catcher A.J. Pierzynski, who also took an at-bat in the same batter's box he made famous in Game 2 of the 2005 American League Championship Series.

On Saturday, the iconic Paul Konerko returned to 35th and Shields to take one more at-bat at the ballpark where he had so many memorable moments. He was not going to hit a grand slam like he did in Game 2 of the 2005 World Series, but it was still nice to see Paulie take a couple more swings.

Legendary manager Ozzie Guillen also joined in the festivities by coaching first base in Saturday's game. He even got in one of the Bananas' dance routines.

The Bananas busted a myth that no one goes to games at Rate Field

White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf has often used the argument that he cannot draw enough fans to the ballpark because of the neighborhood. I have always felt like Bridgeport, the neighborhood Rate Field is located in, being "unsafe" is a stereotype made up by Cubs fans.

The Bananas just drew 80,000 fans over two days. If Rate Field was so unsafe and difficult to get to, I doubt families would be rushing to take in a night of fun baseball.

The White Sox can draw a crowd to their home ballpark if the on-field product is worth watching. This is not a fan base that will just loyally go to the park because the beer is flowing and the ivy on the outfield walls looks nice. We are not Cubs fans!

Reinsdorf has made being a White Sox fan miserable, so the fan base has chosen to stay home. We will return if a winner is on the field. Rate Field was jammed packed in 2005 (it was still known as U.S. Cellular Field) when the team won the World Series. There was not an empty seat during the 2008 playoffs.

Game 3 of the 2021 ALDS was filled with passionate White Sox fans and electric crowd participating in another "blackout."

When things go bad, it's not worth fighting the Dan Ryan traffic to get to a Sox game. That doesn't mean it's a fair-weather fan base. It is a fan base that is letting the owner know bad baseball is not acceptable.

Jerry rarely listens to our cries, so tuning out his club is the only option Sox fans have to protest his ownership of the club.

But as we see year after year, White Sox fans will show up for entertaining baseball. This year's team is at least showing hope of better days to come, and the club has already drawn over 1.1 million fans this season as a result. They will easily blow past the 1.3 million mark the club drew during last year's historically awful season.

Hopefully, when Justin Ishbia takes over as the controlling owner in 2029, he sees that he can draw if he puts a winning and entertaining product on the field.