This week, as social media took on the unique task of unofficially picking an MVP for the epic Game 3 of the World Series, a surprising candidate emerged…and we’re not even talking about underdog relief pitcher Will Klein of the Los Angeles Dodgers (and yes, he is). As fans discuss their favorite parts of this grueling yet thrilling game, we’re talking about Dodgers organist Dieter Ruhle. He was standing with Shōtei Otani and others. Rhule is now virtually legendary in baseball circles for the wit inherent in his song cues and his ability to keep the energy out of the stadium. And never was it more important than in a game that lasted nearly seven hours, where Rhule’s astute choices created as much intrigue as whether someone would score another goal before sunrise.
Luhle’s choices are not necessarily humorous. For example, this year, when Clayton Kershaw came off the mound after the last regular game of the season and of his career, the organist played a little bit of the Verve’s “Bittersweet Symphony” to get in the mood. But more often than not, he provides his own entertaining commentary during his walks, with obvious songs like “Walk Like an Egyptian” and “Walk of Life.” Or they choose less explicit songs, like Group 311’s songs when the score is 3-1. “Piano Man” at 9pm on Saturday night, “Clocks” from “We Can Work It Out” during a mound visit, and “I Am the Walrus” when Tommy Edman is awake (“Eggman”/Edman…close enough).
With Game 5 just hours away on Wednesday, Variety spoke with Edman about what it’s like to have the right music for a near-record-length game like Monday night, as well as his thoughts on the importance of the organ in the ballpark and the role of humor in the overall play. (And since he’s the king of Easter eggs in Major League Baseball, we had to ask if there’s some mystical meaning behind him repeatedly playing Taylor Swift’s “Opalite” and “Golden” by K-Pop Demon Hunters.)
In social media threads about you during the World Series, we’ve seen many jealous Blue Jays fans say, “Toronto needs an organist.” We’re spoiled in LA and don’t realize that not every team has it, but when the whole world is watching the series, suddenly everyone becomes more aware.
It was great to hear that and people could actually hear and feel the difference. Of course I’m biased, but that’s how I feel when I watch games that are only recorded elsewhere. To me, it automatically feels like it could be better. They can add vibrancy and personality to a venue without live music. Fortunately, a significant number of ballparks still have organs installed, and those fans can experience them. It’s like soundtracking what’s happening on the field and just reacting to it. Because the game is not scripted and is live. So what better way than with live accompaniment?
Of course, it’s not at all unusual for Dodgers games to go into multiple overtimes. But Game 3 took the overtime to a whole different level, and it was fitting that the finale featured some songs that hinted at epic length. Is there a song that you don’t have a chance to use much, but somehow remains stuck in the back of your head?
Well, if the game lasts a long time, I have a few things in the back of my mind. For example, if a game takes three hours, I usually play the “Gilligan’s Island” theme because the lyrics talk about a “three-hour tour.” As I hit the 6 hour mark on Monday night, I thought to myself, I thought, “Wait a minute, it’s 3 hours x 2, so what if we play ‘Gilligan’ again?” I thought that was some kind of deep thing (see)…but actually, to my surprise, people noticed it, and I was like, yes, they got it!
Then something like Billy Joel’s “The Longest Time” came to mind and I played a little bit of it. Then we played the theme to “The Never Ending Story.” Because this game just felt like it was never-ending. It just came to me probably a few minutes before I played it. I thought, “Oh, this would be great.” Luckily, I already knew how to play those songs, so I didn’t have to learn them on the fly.
However, “Never Ending Story” isn’t something you pull out often.
Not very often, no. But there was a baseball player named Trevor Story who played for the Colorado Rockies for a long time, and he played a little bit every time they came here, so he played well. But yeah, I can’t play it often.
People were en masse adding songs from Game 3 to their playlists on social media. “Final Countdown,” “All Night Long,” “Just Can’t Get Enough”… game-related or not, they sound great as organ snippets.
Yeah. I love Depeche Mode. “I can’t get enough of this baseball game,” right? I’m trying to add little things here and there, and if that gets through to the fans, I hope it makes them smile.
People who have baseball as their favorite sport often do so because of the aspects of the game that cannot be replicated in other sports. That applies here too. It’s a very tense match, but in a sense, we’re able to incorporate comedic elements into it without sacrificing the tension. Comedy is not allowed in football.
But if you ask me, I think if you do it on an organ, it’s not as precise, it’s more subtle. It’s not in your face because the lyrics explode. And obviously we have the technology to play all the tracks, right? But with the organ, it’s a little more subtle, and while it’s part of the game, it’s not bigger than the game. Because people come here to watch the World Series. So I think the organ can add some fun comedy here and there if you want, but in a subtle way that doesn’t lose anything. We’re not bigger than the game anyway. I think so.
If you don’t use social media and just sit and enjoy the game, do you have an estimate of how many people get mentions and jokes?Obviously, most people don’t care about that. Is it 10% or 20%?
I don’t know how many people there are. All I know is that I have social media accounts. Having multiple posts on Twitter or X can be very overwhelming. The bottom of the 14th inning stretch I posted the other day has been viewed over 140,000 times. I was like, wow, that’s a lot, you know? However, not everything is listed. Recording and playback are not possible. So I don’t know how many people are aware of them. Sometimes it’s more than I think. Sometimes I am very pleasantly surprised.
Did you have a 14-inning stretch on Monday night? Those of us watching at home were fooled.
Yes, we do “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” every seventh inning, so when we hit the 14th inning, it was time to stretch again. People were so excited because stretching is usually such a fun part when it comes to baseball games. And now you can do it again after a few hours, which is very unusual.
If you’re a Taylor Swift fan who’s seen a recent game, you immediately recognized “Opalite” from her new album. You also played “Golden” and “Soda Pop” from “Kpop Demon Hunters”. Is it some kind of reference that’s included there, or is it just because it’s a fun song that people love right now?
No, it’s just fun. In “Golden” you sometimes do it after a pop-up, because “up, up, up” and the ball goes up, up, up. I might do it then, but it’s a bit unreasonable. But when it comes to the current ones, I just play them because they’re popular right now. In reality, there is not always a connection or connection. Sometimes there is, sometimes not.
I started researching “Opalite” as follows. Is there a blue tint of opalite? Is it related to Dodger Blue? And of course there is. But I was overthinking it.
No, that’s really cool. I mean, you get it on social. People will say, “Oh, I played it for this,” which I didn’t really, but it kind of works.
I immediately recognized the “Twin Peaks” theme, but it wasn’t easy to understand what it meant when I first thought about it. Then there’s a song I may never realize, but a lot of people know, called “I2I” from “The Goofy Movie.”
The song is called “I2I” (pronounced “eye-to-eye”), but it looks like “1-2-1.” When that happens, the scoreboard will say “1 ball, 2 strikes, 1 out,” so you’ll play “I2I.” I was really surprised how many people noticed it. At the same time, many were interested: “What’s the deal here?” When I explain it to them, they’re like, “Oh, of course.”
In Game 3, which you played earlier, people loved hearing the Ewoks’ celebratory song.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. This song was at the end of Return of the Jedi, so we usually play it near the end of the game, usually in the eighth or ninth inning, when we’re about to win, and it’s kind of a happy celebration song, so we thought, “Oh, maybe we’ll play it there.” We will also be playing “Con te partirò,” which is Andrea Bocelli’s “Time to Say Goodbye.” So we’ll do another one in the 9th inning. As long as we’re winning.
Game 3 had people wondering if the players were tired. What about you – were you tired? Was it taxing you?
Yes, everyone was getting tired. The organist was also tired. But the adrenaline got me through it and the love for this job got me through it. You need energy and you’re always thinking ahead…so I was tired. But it was definitely fun and tiring.
We’ll hear more at Wednesday night’s final home game of the series. But the Dodgers aren’t your only job. Looking forward to hearing from you with the Kings this offseason, right?
Yeah. Actually, there’s a Kings game tomorrow. Hockey season starts in October, so we’re on our third or fourth game. There’s a Kings game tomorrow and another Kings game on Saturday. Both are fun. Summer, winter, outdoors, indoors, etc. are obviously very different. One is hot weather and the other can be quite cold in the arena. They are different, but each is certainly fun in its own way.
(Click here to read Variety’s interview with country star Brad Paisley about accidentally singing the national anthem during the two longest games in World Series history.)
