Matthew Kaminski is a talented musician on multiple instruments, particularly the organ. His proficiency as an organist has won him all sorts of gigs, including with the Atlanta Braves, where he has played the organ at home games since 2009. He also plays for the University of Georgia baseball program when the Bulldogs are in town and the Braves aren’t, and he’s visited other college and minor league programs to share his talent.
Kaminski is a wonderful follow on Twitter and Facebook, not just because he’s a treasure trove of jazz history but also because he’s terrific at interacting with his followers. One of the things I love most about Kaminski is that he crowdsources songs to play from among his followers, and he has tons of fun doing so.
Whether he’s playing for the Braves or the Bulldogs (or anywhere else he might travel), Kaminski plays around with the walkup songs for the opposing team. Before every game, he posts a batting order on social media and asks his followers for suggestions. Most often, it’s a play on words with a player’s name — my all-time favorite one was when the Chicago Cubs played the Braves several years ago and Kaminski played “There Are Worse Things I Could Do” for Anthony Rizzo — or something having to do with a characteristic of a player.
Related: Atlanta Is in the Running for the 2025 MLB All-Star Game, but Where’s MLB’s Apology for 2021?
On Saturday, the Braves hosted the Philadelphia Phillies for Game 1 of the National League Division Series (NLDS). The Phillies have a player named Brandon Marsh, who cultivates a particular image: long hair that at least looks unkempt and a big beard. Marsh is also a local product who hails from metro Atlanta, but that doesn’t matter to Braves fans — or Kaminski.
During batting practice, the organist played “Smelly Cat” and “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair,” and he chose “Smelly Cat” as the walkup music for Marsh.
Braves A Lister, Mallory, took a video of me playing “Smelly Cat” and “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair” for batting practice: https://t.co/cpL4DVet91
— #61 Matthew Kaminski 🎹 (@bravesorganist) October 10, 2023
The Braves lost Saturday night’s game miserably; maybe that was some sort of cosmic revenge, but it didn’t stop Phillies fans from proving that they have no sense of humor.
Phillies fans pounced on Kaminski for his music choices, but Kaminski made sure his followers saw how ridiculously these people were behaving.
— #61 Matthew Kaminski 🎹 (@bravesorganist) October 8, 2023
By the way, why does it matter that Marsh is from Georgia? If he plays for the other team, he’s the “enemy,” and besides, he has to know that people are going to make fun of that look he cultivates.
Some responses sounded more threatening than others, but Kaminski took it all in stride and with a sense of humor.
There were plenty more comments I could’ve chosen, but this is a family site, so I had to pass them by. However, one member of the media even got involved.
the organist repeatedly playing "smelly cat" when Marsh walks up feels like it has rude undertones to it.
— Taryn Hatcher (@TarynNBCS) October 7, 2023
Kaminski has been finding even more comments in the days since Game 1.
Comments on TikTok are even funnier! 🤣 pic.twitter.com/vqA4hSjeeB
— #61 Matthew Kaminski 🎹 (@bravesorganist) October 11, 2023
(Allegedly, Marsh uses water on his hair to achieve that, ummm, style.)
Kaminski took it all in stride in the run-up to Game 2.
— #61 Matthew Kaminski 🎹 (@bravesorganist) October 9, 2023
There are two lessons from this story, kids. First of all, some Phillies fans sorely need to lighten up. (And yes, I’m aware that the vast majority of Phillies fans aren’t this bad. I hope.) Second, Matthew Kaminski is a treasure, and I hope the Braves keep him around for a long time to come.
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