Humboldt Crabs

The Humboldt Crabs are a collegiate summer baseball team located in Arcata, California. Playing in every season since they were founded in 1945 by Lou Bonomini, later joined by Ned Barsuglia, the Crabs are the oldest continually-operated summer collegiate baseball team in American baseball. Through the 2024 season the Crabs have a total record of 2693 wins, 830 losses, and one tie. The Crabs did not play the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of 2024, the Crabs are charter members of the newly-formed Pacific Empire League.

Crabs games are broadcast on KEJB 1480 AM, the Humboldt Crabs YouTube Channel, and stats are live on GameChanger App. Most games also include th
Crab Grass Band
formed in 1983, that play songs in between innings.

Brief background

Originally the Eureka Paladini Crabs, named for the Paladini Fish Company who sponsored the team from 1945 to 1947. Mel Bareilles, grandfather of Sara Bareilles, played on the Crabs in their inaugural season and Lloyd Bridges Sr., father of Lloyd Bridges, was a lifelong Crabs fan and financial supporter.

In the 77-year history of the Humboldt Crabs, over 300 players have continued on to play professional baseball, with over 60 former Crabs going all the way to the Major Leagues. Dane Iorg played for the Crabs from 1968 to 1970. John Oldham, a Crabs pitcher in 1952–53, was the first to make it all the way, playing for the Cincinnati Reds in 1956. Leo Rosales, who pitched for the 2002 Crabs, was called up to the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2008. 2003 Crabs infielder Brett Pill was called up to the San Francisco Giants in 2011, and was on the team's 2012 roster as a 1st baseman. Most recently, Vinny Pestano, Bradley Zimmer, and Mike Redmond are all former Crabs.

Their best season, record-wise, was 1985 when the team won 46 consecutive games to start the season. Future Major Leaguers Mike Harkey, Eric Gunderson, Steve Olin, and Scott Chiamparino led a dominant pitching staff.

The Crabs play the majority of their games at home at the Arcata Ball Park, owned by the City of Arcata. The team is made up of college players from different NCAA programs throughout the U.S. The Humboldt Crabs are a non-profit baseball organization operated by a 12-member all-volunteer Board of Directors. Rivals include the Redding Colt 45s, the Fontanetti's Athletics, the Corvallis Knights, and the Seattle Studs. Most recent opponents include Healdsburg Prune Packers, San Luis Obispo Blues, Seals Baseball, Walnut Creek Crawdads, Solano Mudcats, Marysville Gold Sox and many others from the CCL League. Past opponents include House of David, the Indianapolis Clowns, the Oakland Larks, the Los Angeles White Sox, the San Diego Tigers, the Portland Roses, Owl Drug, the Alaska Goldpanners, the Redding Browns, the Bend Elks, the Bellingham Bells, the North Pole Nicks, the Valley Green Giants, the Santa Barbara Foresters, the Anchorage Glacier Pilots, the Boulder Collegians, the Sacramento Smokeys, the Grand Junction Eagles, and Athletes in Action. Through the years the Crabs have run multiple secondary teams, the Humboldt Ports (1962), the Humboldt All-Stars (1996-2006), and the Humboldt Steelheads (2007-2011).

In 2007, the team's 63rd consecutive season, the Crabs overall season record was 42 - 12; in 2008, the Crabs drew an average of 874 fans to the ball park and went 35 - 13 for the season; in 2009 the Crabs record was 48–11; in their 66th season, 2010, the Crabs went 43 - 9; the 2019 team went 33–16. Find stats on the GameChanger app.

The Humboldt Crabs are a non-profit, community-oriented organization. Its mission is four-fold:
*To promote family entertainment by providing high-quality summer collegiate baseball games to the public at a reasonable price;
*To provide talented collegiate-level baseball players with a positive summer baseball experience;
*To support youth sports programs (with an emphasis on baseball or softball) in the Humboldt County area with contributions of funding and/or equipment as funds permit in addition to annual baseball skills camps and clinics operated by Humboldt Crabs players and coaches;
*To preserve and build the tradition of Humboldt Crabs Baseball.

Current roster

2024 player awards

*Most Valuable Player: Jett Ruby
*Offensive Player of the Year: Billy Ham
*Pitcher of the Year: Andrew Overland
*Reliever of the Year: Bryce Stockton
*"Coaches Award" - Kevin Morsching/Scott Heinig Memorial Award: Ethan Rivera
*Defensive Player of the Year:

Organization

Humboldt Crabs Baseball, Inc is a 501(c)(4) community-owned organization. A volunteer board of directors rely on the support of community members & sponsors to keep the Humboldt Crabs Baseball operation functioning.

President

Scarlet Palmer

Coaching staff

*Robin Guiver, Manager
*Eric Giacone, Pitching Coach
*John Bryant, Hitting Coach
*Jeff Giacomini, Assistant Coach

Trainers: Nate Kees

Board of Directors

Note: The board of directors is subject to change from year to year. Current serving members include Scarlet Palmer, David Sharp, Vikki Rossi, Matt Filar, Ellen Barthman, Erik Fraser, Roger Lorenzetti, Larry Zerlang, Michelle Briggs Butler, Neil Butler, and Brice Gummersall.

Far West League

The Crabs joined the Far West League (FWL), which had ten teams participating in the 2011 season. The five-team FWL North Division included the Humboldt Crabs, Nor Cal Pirates, Redding Colt 45s, Nevada Bullets (formerly Reno Aces), and Southern Oregon RiverDawgs. The five-team FWL South Division included the Atwater Aviators, Fontanetti's Athletics, Neptune Beach Pearl, California Glory, and Fresno Cardinals. The Crabs were part of the West Coast League/Tri-State (which was associated with the West Coast League in the Pacific Northwest) then merged with the Pacific West Baseball League to form the FWL. (The California Seals were originally an eleventh team in the FWL but are on hiatus for the 2011 season.)

2011 league champions

This inaugural year of the Far West League culminated with the top five League teams competing in a double-elimination Tournament, hosted by the Humboldt Crabs and played in the Arcata Ball Park, August 5–7. The Humboldt Crabs (21 - 6), with the best record in regular season league play, were the top-seeded team, but lost their first game to fourth-seed Fontanetti's Athletics, 1–0, on August 5. To avoid being eliminated, the Crabs had to win four games in a row. On August 6, the Crabs shut out the Atwater Aviators, 2–0, in an elimination game. On August 7 the Crabs won three games in one day, starting with Fontanetti's Athletics, 7–2, (who had beaten the Crabs 2 of 3 games in regular-season play); then facing the Neptune Beach Pearl who had won 8 of their previous 9 games, and who were as yet undefeated in the Tournament. By winning four in a row, including 6-3 and 5-1 wins over the Pearl, the Crabs avoided elimination and won the tournament and the championship.

The Humboldt Crabs finished the 2011 season with records of 40–13 overall, 25–7 in League/Conference play.

The Humboldt Crabs rank #22 from among over 220 summer collegiate league teams in the nation for the week of August 9, 2011, by Perfect Game USA.Perfect Game USA: Summer Collegiate Team Rankings 8/9/2011
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The Far West League has since disbanded, but the Crabs were league champions all three years in its inception.

Year by year records

(*)denotes California State Semi-Pro Champion

(^) denotes West of the Rockies Tournament Champion

(<) denotes All-American Invitational Champion

(~) denotes season not played due to the COVID-19 pandemic

National Rankings through 1985 are for finishes at the National Baseball Congress World Series in Wichita, Kansas.

(*)denotes California State Semi-Pro Champion

(^) denotes West of the Rockies Tournament Champion

(<) denotes All-American Invitational Champion

(~) denotes season not played due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Crabs in MLB

73 former Crabs went on to play in the Major Leagues: Dave Melton (1949), John Oldham (1952-1953, 1961–1962), Chuck Nieson (1961), Danny Frisella (1964), Rich Nye (1965), Mike Paul (1965), Buzz Stephen (1965), Sandy Vance (1966), Steve Hovley (1966), Jim Nettles (1966), Bob Gallagher (1966), Greg Shanahan (1967-1970), Lute Barnes (1967-1968), Rick Sawyer (1967), Ken Hottman (1968), Ken Crosby (1968), Rick Miller (1968), Dane Iorg (1968-1970), Bruce Bochte (1969), Bill Bonham (1969), Eric Raich (1970), Bob Kammeyer (1971), Rich Dauer (1972), Frank LaCorte (1972), Warren Brusstar (1973), Steve Davis (1973), Barry Bonnell (1974), Sandy Wihtol (1974), Randy Niemann (1975), Bruce Benedict (1976), Joe Price (1976), Jim Wessinger (1976), Tim Tolman (1976), Mike Gates (1977), Stefan Wever (1977), Craig Lefferts (1978), Rich Bordi (1978), Jim Scranton (1978), Tom Dodd (1978-1979), Rod Booker (1979), Jack Fimple (1979-1980), La Schelle Tarver (1980), Jim Wilson (1981), Colin Ward (1981), Shane Turner (1982), Scott Anderson (1982-1983), Jose Mota (1983), John Fishel (1983), Xavier Hernandez (1984), Mike Harkey (1985), Scott Chiamparino (1985), Steve Olin (1985–86), Eric Gunderson (1985–86), Dennis Springer (1986), Scott Lewis (1986), Victor Cole (1987), Ed Giovanola (1988), Greg Gohr (1988), Gary Wilson (1989), Mike Redmond (1991), Mike Kinkade (1992), Roland Delamaza (1992), Mike Thurman (1993), Rob Ryan (1993), Josh Pearce (1998), Leo Rosales (2002), Brett Pill (2003), Vinnie Pestano (2004), Bradley Zimmer (2012), Jason Alexander (2016), James Outman (2016), David Hamilton (2016), and David Morgan (2021).
Four players, Lee Gregory (1966–67), Bill Serena (1961), Eddie Kearse (1951), and Floyd Stromme (1950) played for the Crabs after playing in the MLB.

Famous Crabs

Mel Bareilles (1945), Bill Prentice (1946), Dick Clegg (1949), Roger Osenbaugh (1949-1950), Ed Hemingway (coach 1953), Al Endriss (1955), Bob Milano (player 1962–1963, coach 1979), Augie Garrido (1966), Mark Marquess (1966-1967), Russ McQueen (1971-1972), Brad Kelley (1973), Berdy Harr (coach 1976–1977), Tom Beyers (1977–78), Pat Casey (1980), Dan Yokubaitis (1981-1982), Kerwin Danley (1982), Mike Dotterer (1982), Nick Fuscardo (coach 1983–1984), Gary Henderson (1983), Reggie Christiansen (player 1995–1996, coach 2000), Ron Mingo (2000-2003), Marco Grifantini (2004), Steve Detwiler (2007, 2009), Alex Crosby (2014), Alex Cappa (ballpark staff 2015–2016), Tim Wheeler (coach 2016), Alex Pham (2018), Tyler Ganus (2021), and David Morgan (2021).

Crabs Hall of Fame

Class of 2012: Ned Barsuglia, Bob Bonomini, Lou Bonomini, Adam Carr, Steve Fish, Mike Harkey, Dane Iorg, Rico Pastori, Greg Shanahan, Don Terbush, 1985 Team (51 Wins, 3 Losses)

Class of 2013: Eddie Oliveira, Don Carter, Sandy Vance, Mark Marquess, Randy Niemann, Craig Lefferts, Steve Olin, Tom Giacomini, Mike Redmond, Brian Blauser, 1968 Team (42 Wins, 11 Losses)

Class of 2014: Eldridge “Red” Hunt, Carl Del Grande, Dennis Pontoni, Augie Garrido, Rich Nye, Rich Bordi, Rod Booker, Steve Neel, Gary Wilson, Jeff Giacomini, 1981 Team (43 Wins, 10 Losses)

Class of 2015: Fred Papini, Douglas Clayton, Billy Olsen, Lute Barnes, Paul Ziegler, Shane Turner, Scott Eskra, Joe Gerber, Nick Giacone, 2003 Team (43 Wins, 5 Losses)

Class of 2016: Mark Pirrucello, John Oldham, Bruce Benedict, Jim Wilson, Burt Nordstrom, Chris DeBoo, Richard Cates, Jerry Nutter, Elvira Bonomini, 1999 Team (45 Wins, 3 Losses)

No Hall of Fame Class of 2017

Class of 2018: John Austin, Lee Iorg, Troy Schader, Leo Rosales, Pat Clements, Bob Milano, Jim "Spider" Thomas, Jack Fimple, Ugo Giuntini, 1990 team (44 Wins, 3 Losses)

Class of 2019: Hans Smith, Wade Hammond, Gregg Reynolds, Eric Gunderson, Al Masterson, Larry Taylor, David Ferres, Ken Dunaway, Joe Gallaty, Mary "Baseball Betty" Lacefield

No Hall of Fame Class of 2020-2023

Class of 2024: Al Brisack, Matt Tomlin, Greg Lorenzetti, Brandon Marcelli, Reggie Christiansen, Fred Lomeli, 2015 Team (41-9)

References

External links

* {{Official website

Video documentary "Humboldt Crabs Baseball," A Nutter Production

Amateur baseball teams in California
Arcata, California
Tourist attractions in Humboldt County, California
1945 establishments in California
Baseball teams established in 1945
Sports in Humboldt County, California