Zach Staton used to be a sports anchor for a Norfolk TV station.
But in recent weeks, the Salem High School graduate has been on ESPN and ESPN2.
Thanks to Banana Ball.
Staton is a play-by-play announcer and sideline reporter for Banana Ball, the brand of baseball made famous in recent years by the Savannah Bananas.
Staton, who used to attend minor league games at Salem Memorial Ballpark when he was a kid, will be back at that ballpark Friday and Saturday to broadcast Banana Ball games.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been something I鈥檝e had circled on my calendar,鈥 Staton, 30, said Tuesday in a phone interview. 鈥淚鈥檓 really, really excited.
鈥淏eing able to broadcast a game there 鈥 is going to be something special.
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鈥淭his is like a personal Super Bowl for me.鈥
The Firefighters will square off with the Texas Tailgaters at 7 p.m. Friday and 7 p.m. Saturday in Salem. Those are two of the four Banana Ball teams.
Staton does Firefighters broadcasts 鈥 and wears firefighter pants and suspenders at the games. When the Firefighters are the designated home team, as they will be in Salem, Staton does the play-by-play for the Firefighters鈥 YouTube page.
When the Firefighters are the designated road team, as they were for recent games against the Bananas at sold-out Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., and at sold-out Fenway Park in Boston, Staton serves as the sideline reporter 鈥 even when the telecasts are on bigger outlets than YouTube. ESPN2 aired the June 28 Firefighters-Bananas game at Nationals Park, while ESPN televised last Saturday鈥檚 Firefighters-Bananas clash at Fenway. So Station got to be on ESPN2 and ESPN.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been incredible,鈥 Staton said. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e visiting 鈥 major league parks.
鈥淢y dad鈥檚 a lifelong Red Sox fan, 鈥 so I tried to live vicariously for him up in Boston. 鈥 Being in Fenway 鈥 was just unbelievable.鈥
During the ESPN pregame show in Boston, Staton did a handstand while interviewing a Firefighters pitcher who had recently pitched from the handstand position.
鈥淭here鈥檚 still part of me from the traditional local news stuff that鈥檚 like, 鈥楳an, this seems a little out there,鈥欌 he said. 鈥淏ut I鈥檓 quickly learning to get past that and show the energy that I had when I was a third grader.
鈥淵eah, I fell (when doing the handstand), but who cares? I got to have fun on ESPN.鈥
Staton considers himself to be a 鈥渂roadcast entertainer鈥 in his new job, which he assumed earlier this season. He tries to be suitably excited when doing play-by-play of a shortstop fielding a grounder and tossing the ball behind his back before throwing the ball to first base.
鈥淵ou try everything you can to enhance the idea of the chaos and the fun and the unexpected that is Banana Ball,鈥 he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e allowed (as announcers) to show our personalities a little bit more. We鈥檙e allowed to get excited, be a little more boisterous.鈥
A Banana Ball game is like a Harlem Globetrotters-Washington Generals basketball game 鈥 if both teams were the Globetrotters. In Banana Ball, both teams deliver entertaining antics during the game.
鈥淚t鈥檚 such a fun and exciting and different concept, where a ton of things are happening all at the same time,鈥 Staton said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like doing play-by-play for baseball, Disney World and the circus all wrapped up into one. 鈥 In Fenway Park, Doug Flutie threw out the first pitch 鈥 and one thing turned to another and Doug Flutie was pitching the first out of the game.
鈥淚f a fan catches a fall ball cleanly, it鈥檚 an out. So you have to be ready as announcer to call that and to highlight that fan.
鈥淵ou have to go to one of these to truly experience the magic of what is going on.鈥
Staton graduated from Bridgewater College in 2017. He earned a master鈥檚 degree in broadcast and digital journalism from Syracuse in 2018.
In 2022, Staton left his job as the weekday sports anchor at WDAY-TV in Fargo, North Dakota, to become the weekend sports anchor and weekday sports reporter at WTKR-TV in Norfolk.
But he was laid off from his job in Norfolk in April. So he applied for the Banana Ball job.
鈥淚 covered (Banana Ball) when they came to Norfolk last year, and I saw how much was going on and 鈥 I saw the fact that the players all seemed to be having fun together,鈥 he said.
Staton had a tryout at the Firefighters鈥 games in late May at Angel Stadium in Los Angeles. After getting the job, he served as the play-by-play announcer at the Firefighters鈥 June 20-21 games in Richmond.
For this week鈥檚 games in Salem, Staton will not only be doing the YouTube play-by-play. He will also be interacting with fans before the games.
As one of the pregame hosts, Staton will be on a stage around 4 p.m. to address fans who assemble outside the ballpark at the 鈥減regame plaza.鈥 Around 6 p.m., after the gates open, Staton will man a crowd microphone and do his hosting while on the field.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a show for the live crowd,鈥 he said. 鈥淲e鈥檒l try to do a couple things before the gates even open to get the crowd juiced up.
鈥淥nce people go into the stadium, we鈥檒l have about an hour or so before the broadcast gets going, so they like to have us in there talking to the crowd, doing things with them to keep them entertained.鈥
Staton is employed by Fans First Entertainment, the Savannah, Georgia-based company that owns the Banana Ball teams. He plans to move soon from Norfolk to Savannah.
He and the Firefighters will be in Baltimore, San Diego and Yankee Stadium, among other major league ballparks, later this season.
