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Umpire's 'Three Blind Mice' upset makes Daytona Cubs intern famous
BY SEAN KERNAN, STAFF WRITER
August 2, 2012 12:50 PM
DAYTONA BEACH - A Daytona Cubs intern who played an audio clip of "Three Blind Mice" and was ejected by the home plate umpire during Wednesday night's game is getting a lot of publicity today.
Derek Dye, 21, a rising senior at the University of Illinois, has been deluged with media requests, including ESPN and ABC's Good Morning America, according to Daytona Cubs Media Relations Director Robbie Aaron.
Dye, of Moline, Ill., was taken back by the firestorm of publicity from his actions that resulted in umpire Mario Seneca booting him and shutting down the public-address system in the Cubs' 2-1 victory over the Fort Myers Miracle at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.
"I'm just kind of not believing this right now," Dye told The News-Journal this morning. "It's quite an experience. I guess this will be my legacy at Daytona. The story has gone nationwide."
Dye said he expects to be fined by the Florida State League, but as an unpaid intern he hopes the penalty isn't too stiff.
Aaron said Dye will not be in the press box for tonight's 7:05 "Thirsty Thursday" game against Fort Myers at The Jack, but instead will be selling tickets.
Daytona Cubs general manager Brady Ballard said he thought playing the audio clip was "harmless." The GM also said he has heard it played before at other sporting events without reaction from game officials or umpires.
"There are rules," Ballard said. "It probably violated the rules, but again, there's been discussion on whether it was an overreaction."
On his Facebook page, Seneca posted, "The good news is that I called my league president (Chuck Murphy) afterwards, and he said I did the correct thing. His opinion is pretty much the only one that matters, since he's my boss," MLB.com reported.
A Google news search at noon for "Three Blind Mice Daytona Cubs" returned more than 210 news articles, including one on news-journalonline.com. "You see how quickly things can go viral," Ballard said. "It's gotten a lot of attention."
After a close call at first base was argued by Cubs skipper Brian Harper, Dye, who was at the computer controls for the music clips used during the game, played the brief audio clip. It followed a controversial call by base umpire Ramon Hernandez in the top of the eighth inning. Seneca responded by ejecting Dye and ordering the stadium's public-address sound system shut down for the rest of the game.
Seneca pointed to the press box and bellowed: "You're gone! No more music!" Verbal announcements over the sound system for such things as batters coming to the plate or pitching changes also weren't allowed.
Dye's post on his Facebook page just after the ejection: "Just got ejected from tonight's Daytona Cubs game. Not even kidding. I played '3 Blind Mice' after a questionable call and got tossed. Umpire looked up and said, 'You're gone!' and directed me to the showers. Wow, my first ever ejection."
Ballard said the clip has been removed from the new organ music selections that were purchased this week. He said there are plenty other organ music clips to choose from for tonight's series finale against the Miracle at 7:05.
After Wednesday's game, Dye said many of his friends called and texted him. "After the game, I was cleaning up the dugout and my phone was just chirping nonstop," Dye said.
He joked with Major League Baseball's website about selecting the piece.
"I think it's a pretty popular children's fable," Dye told MLB.com. "He's umpiring the game tomorrow, so I don't think I'll be playing it anytime soon."
Manager Harper was in the process of arguing the call when he heard Seneca shout "You're gone!"
"I thought he kicked me out of the game," Harper said.
Wednesday's incident at The Jack wasn't the first time an umpire had an issue with the individual making the music selections at the ballpark. Wilbur Snapp, an organist, drew national attention in 1985 after an umpire ejected him for playing "Three Blind Mice" after what he considered to be a bad call against the minor league Clearwater Phillies.
Snapp's ejection triggered phone calls from around the country. The ejection was talked about NBC's "Today" show, and Paul Harvey talked about it on his syndicated radio program.
Fans sought Snapp's autograph, and he signed it "Wilbur Snapp, Three Blind Mice organist."
Snapp, who died in 2003 at age 83, lived in St. Petersburg and provided the music at Philadelphia Phillies games throughout spring training and for minor league games throughout the summer.
-- Staff writer Godwin Kelly contributed to this report.
