A New England native is headed south to try his hand at professional baseball—and he’s taking his unicycle with him.”Not my wildest dreams I would ever imagine unicycling on a baseball field!” said Jonathan Luders at The Grind Factory in Salem. “Not ever!” Luders, born and raised in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, will help christen the newest team in the Banana Ball League, made wildly popular by the Savannah Bananas. The shortstop utility player is now a Texas Tailgater, the fourth Banana Ball team. They’ll take on the league’s Party Animals for their first game in New Mexico in May. “I think Lynnfield Little League is probably where it all started,” Luders said. From Lynnfield Little League, Luders went on to play in high school before heading to Seton Hall, where he played for five years, thanks to a COVID-19 interruption during his freshman year. Along the way, Luders has played for the North Shore Navigators and even had a summer stint on the Cape Cod League. “It was like a dream come true,” Luders said, “because I’m from Massachusetts. I grew up watching these games. And to be able to play on the field that I grew up going to games at was pretty neat. I had one at-bat. I got a hit. And then I got released. So, I’m batting a thousand on the Cape!”WATCH: Jonathan offers up a quick tutorial on how to bat on a unicycleLuders wanted to enter the MLB Draft League last summer, but injured his knee. In the meantime, he kept training and posting on social media. When he saw the Savannah Bananas playing at Fenway Park, he decided to apply, not knowing he had already garnered the team’s attention. And they didn’t even know about the unicycle yet.”Shoutout to Ms. Robertson, oh my gosh!” Luders said.Ms. Robertson was Luders’ elementary school gym teacher. She taught the before-school unicycle class where Luders, as a young athlete, first picked up the skill. He never imagined that incorporating it into his drills at home plate could catch the eye of Savannah Bananas founder Jesse Cole, himself a Massachusetts native.”So when he reached out, I was, like, floored!” Luders said. “I was like, wow. The fact that he was interested in what I’m doing is awesome.”After applying and trying out, Luders was offered the contract and immediately began building on his skills. Luders says he is indebted to his family and his community for their support and can’t wait to play in a league that touts its fan-first approach.”That’s what baseball and summer ball is about,” he said. “So if I can do that on a larger scale with this Banana Ball thing, I think that’ll be a dream come true.”You can keep up with the league’s schedule here. The Bananas make their return trip to Fenway Park on July 5-6 to take on the Firefighters. WATCH the Savannah Bananas enjoying a day in Boston:
A New England native is headed south to try his hand at professional baseball—and he’s taking his unicycle with him.
“Not my wildest dreams I would ever imagine unicycling on a baseball field!” said Jonathan Luders at The Grind Factory in Salem. “Not ever!”
Luders, born and raised in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, will help christen the newest team in the Banana Ball League, made wildly popular by the Savannah Bananas. The shortstop utility player is now a Texas Tailgater, the fourth Banana Ball team. They’ll take on the league’s Party Animals for their first game in New Mexico in May.
“I think Lynnfield Little League is probably where it all started,” Luders said.
From Lynnfield Little League, Luders went on to play in high school before heading to Seton Hall, where he played for five years, thanks to a COVID-19 interruption during his freshman year. Along the way, Luders has played for the North Shore Navigators and even had a summer stint on the Cape Cod League.
“It was like a dream come true,” Luders said, “because I’m from Massachusetts. I grew up watching these games. And to be able to play on the field that I grew up going to games at was pretty neat. I had one at-bat. I got a hit. And then I got released. So, I’m batting a thousand on the Cape!”
WATCH: Jonathan offers up a quick tutorial on how to bat on a unicycle
Luders wanted to enter the MLB Draft League last summer, but injured his knee. In the meantime, he kept training and posting on social media. When he saw the Savannah Bananas playing at Fenway Park, he decided to apply, not knowing he had already garnered the team’s attention.
And they didn’t even know about the unicycle yet.
“Shoutout to Ms. Robertson, oh my gosh!” Luders said.
Ms. Robertson was Luders’ elementary school gym teacher. She taught the before-school unicycle class where Luders, as a young athlete, first picked up the skill. He never imagined that incorporating it into his drills at home plate could catch the eye of Savannah Bananas founder Jesse Cole, himself a Massachusetts native.
“So when he reached out, I was, like, floored!” Luders said. “I was like, wow. The fact that he was interested in what I’m doing is awesome.”
After applying and trying out, Luders was offered the contract and immediately began building on his skills. Luders says he is indebted to his family and his community for their support and can’t wait to play in a league that touts its fan-first approach.
“That’s what baseball and summer ball is about,” he said. “So if I can do that on a larger scale with this Banana Ball thing, I think that’ll be a dream come true.”
You can keep up with the league’s schedule here. The Bananas make their return trip to Fenway Park on July 5-6 to take on the Firefighters.
WATCH the Savannah Bananas enjoying a day in Boston:
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