Editor’s Note: A version of this story first appeared in the Humboldt Historical society’s Humboldt Historian in spring of 2014, on the 70th anniversary of the Humboldt Crabs Baseball team. In 2023, after a decade playing as an independent team, the Crabs joined the Pacific Empire League. The oldest continuously operating semi-pro collegiate summer baseball team in America, the Crabs have just begun their 81st season.
In the early days, they were called “Paladini’s Humboldt Crabs” in honor of initial sponsorship and support provided by the Paladini Fish Co. While the company name was eventually dropped, the Humboldt Crabs were quickly embraced by the local community as a summer tradition.
Commenting on the chosen name in 1945, according to the official 2001 season program, team founder Lou Bonomini said, “We’ll be known as Crabs. Sounds funny but we’re serious. We believe we are publicizing one of the widest-known seafoods on the Pacific coast. No, we won’t be crabbing on the field. I’ll do my best to field a team that will give the fans here some good baseball. We might drop a few this summer but we’ll be in there trying every inning.”
BIRTH OF A COMMUNITY TREASURE
In an early 2006 interview, Ned Barsuglia, who himself spent more than a half century working with the Crabs, was emphatic on two critical points about the local baseball team: the amazing contributions of the entire Bonomini family and their decades-long efforts; and the fact that the Humboldt Crabs are a community treasure.
According to Barsuglia, Bonomini built the Crabs on a strong tradition of local baseball. The late 1930s, for example, featured a six-team “Mid County League,” which included teams like the Merchants, a team Barsuglia played for as a right fielder/relief pitcher during the summers of 1937 through 1940.
Bonomini himself credited the team’s establishment to a strong local baseball tradition that was supported by businesses like Paladini’s Fish and Eureka Newspapers Inc.
Beginning his efforts to create the team in 1944, Bonomini led the Crabs to an inaugural opening day on June 17, 1945, and would go on to coach and manage the team for the next 43 years.
Lou Bonomini passed away on Dec. 17, 2000. As part of a eulogy delivered at his funeral four days later, then Crabs board member Carl Del Grande recalled his own years as a batboy for the early Crabs teams, saying, “Unlike today, these Crabs were not college students but rather breadwinners with families to feed. Each had a day job but gave up his weekends for the love of the game and because even in those early days no one said ‘no’ to Lou Bonomini.”
Reciting a roster of local players who might have been present on an early Sunday afternoon, Del Grande identified his own father, as well as player and coach Lou Bonomini, Lou’s brother Joe as umpire, Dave Hauger, Rico Pastori, Ed Oliveira, Maury Ayala, Charley Timmons (of Paladini’s), Veryl Buffington, Roger Osenbach, Bob Mathews, Frankie Costa, Clarence McLain and Kenny Dunaway. Del Grande said, “It was Louie Bonomini who took a ragtag bunch of locals called the Paladini Humboldt Crabs and led them to national prominence by competing successfully at the National Baseball Congress Championships at Atwater [California], the National Championship Tournament at Wichita, Kansas, and ultimately to the high quality championship teams that we know today.”
Other individuals that he credited with contributing to the success of the Humboldt Crabs included Fred Papini (assistant coach), Gabe Vallee (in charge of concessions), Ugo Guintini (running the gate), Frank Salzoni (field conditions) and local media legend Don Terbush (announcer and scorekeeper).
THE TEAM EVOLVES
Del Grande, quoted in the team’s 2001 program, said of Barsuglia, “Fortunately for Louie, back in 1965, a dear friend, Ned Barsuglia, became the team’s general manager and took care of the off-field operations and player recruitment.”
Interviewed in April of 2006, Barsuglia recalled a few years of transition into his new role with the Crabs, “from ’65 to ’67. Then in ’67 [Bonomini] said, ‘Hey, you do some of the recruiting. That’s when I brought in some of the players from Santa Barbara and I brought in players from Oregon and Washington. Then the following year we expanded … and we’d always get two or three Cal or Stanford players.”
And it was with those increasingly collegiate teams that Barsuglia seemed to have the most vivid memories of the tournament trips to Wichita. “I remember the great trips that we had where we’d go to Wichita [for the National Baseball Congress World Series],” he recalled. “They were great trips. Going through the Colorado Rockies in the evenings gave you spectacular views of the sunsets. We would leave here and play in Reno. Then we’d go to Provo, Utah, and play a couple of nights there,” he continued. “Then we’d go to Grand Junction [Colorado] and play three games there. Then we’d go to Pueblo, Colorado, and play one game there. Then we’d go to the famous western town of Dodge City, Kansas, and play another day there. Then we’d go into Wichita, having played six to eight games on the trip there. And that really seasoned the team.”
Barsuglia noted that alternate itineraries took the team “to Fort Smith, Colorado, which always had a good team, then into Boulder, Colorado, to play the collegiate team. Then sometimes we’d stop off to play at Denver. Then we’d go into Wichita. Then we’d come home on Route 66: Liberal, Albuquerque, Flagstaff, Bakersfield, then home. They were great trips. The only thing was that coming home we’d drive straight through for 40 hours, changing drivers.”
“I enjoyed Lou,” Barsuglia added. “Lou was a great person. … You know, when Louie and I were together we never had a bad word for each other. We never had any problems. He would run the team on the field and he would see that stuff was in the concession stand, because he had a store.”
Barsuglia recalls Bonomini’s daughters and wife running the concession stand. “And Ugo Guintini was [in] the ticket office. I took care of the recruiting, hiring the help and operations. Louie ran the team. And it was great.”
The team also traveled well beyond Route 66 during this period. “I remember when we had that Alaskan League in ’67 to ’72,” Barsuglia said. “We had the San Rafael Braves, which was a team that one of the major league scouts ran. We had Eugene, Oregon. We had the Bellingham Bells. We had Fairbanks and Anchorage. And we had the Sparks Nuggets. And we had Grand Junction. We had that league then. And that league went on for five years and the Crabs won it three out of the five years. That was one of the nicest leagues there was. The only problem was that when we went north, we’d be gone for a week. Then we’d have to go some weekend to San Rafael.”
Asked about his own memories of Bonomini’s “retirement” from the Crabs, Barsuglia characterized it as “a real sad day. … His last year was ’86,” he said, adding that the decision caught him by surprise.
“It just came out of the blue,” he explained. “He called me one day and said, ‘I’m quittin’.’ And boy, when Lou said he was quittin’ he really was quittin’. When he said, ‘This is it,’ it really was it.”
Barsuglia recalled his response: “I said, ‘You can’t quit.’ But he said, ‘You can run it.’ And I was fortunate.”
Barsuglia identified some of that good fortune as having Tom Giacomini replace Bonomini as coach, adding, “When Louie quit, Tom Giacomini’s wife and son and daughter ran it for the next four years. And when Tom got Athletic Director [at College of the Redwoods] in the fall of ’91, that was his last year. Then we had to bring in different coaches. We brought in Steve Neal, who played for the Crabs and had the home run record for many years until Troy Schader — it had been 20 until Schader came through with 23. So Tom’s boy and girl ran the concession stand while Ugo [Guintini] ran the gate …. My son-in-law helped running the gate when Ugo wanted the day off … and we operated that way through ’94.” Barsuglia’s other family members performed many of the critical support roles during this period.
PREPARING FOR A SECOND HALF CENTURY
In 1995, Barsuglia announced that the time had come for him to step down as well and, with no obvious protege being trained, it appeared that the Humboldt Crabs would fold after a half century of baseball.
It was at this point that Jerry Nutter figuratively stepped up to the plate and “saved the Crabs.” The father of former Crabs’ pitcher Matt Nutter, Jerry applied his broad expertise as the retired president of the Orange County YMCA to transition the Crabs from a small operation supported by overworked family members to a not-for-profit community benefit organization run by a volunteer board of directors numbering nearly two dozen.
Barsuglia retained the role as “chief scout” for the evolving organization.
A small point of local historic debate has emerged as a result of subsequent interviews in which Barsuglia has said on a few occasions that he may have “hedged” on his threats to close the team in ’95.
And it was just fortunate that Matt Nutter decided that he would like to take it over with his dad. — Ned Barsuglia
For example, in April 2006, he stated, “And then when I told them I was quitting it was quite a shock to some people. But I already had the team. I had the schedule. So I thought, ‘Well, I’ll say I’m quittin’ and if nobody takes it, I guess I’ll have to run it another year.’ And it was just fortunate that Matt Nutter decided that he would like to take it over with his dad [Jerry]. His dad didn’t know anything about baseball at the time, but we sat down two or three times a week and talked about the Crabs and he got onto it. He’s done a good job.”
But the reality is that, regardless of how it might have been characterized later, most people familiar with the situation are convinced that the Crabs would have never entered their second half-century without the guidance and efforts of Jerry Nutter and his ability to create the viable structure that continues to provide Humboldt County with quality summer baseball.
Humboldt Crabs 2025 Home Schedule
June 6 — Fresno A’s, 7 p.m.*
June 7 — Fresno A’s (’80s Night), 6:30 p.m.
June 8 — Fresno A’s (Fairy Festival Day), 12:30 p.m.*
June 10 — Stockton Pearls, 7 p.m.*
June 11 — Stockton Pearls (Cowbell Night), 7 p.m.
June 13 — Athletic Edge Express (Tie-dye Night), 7 p.m.*
June 14 — Athletic Edge Express, 2:30 p.m.
June 15 — Athletic Edge Express (Father’s Day, Pierson’s Giveaway), 12:30 p.m.*
June 24 — Chico Lone Wolves (Superhero Night), 7 p.m.
June 25 — Chico Lone Wolves, 7 p.m.*
June 27 — Lincoln Potters (HSU/Cal Poly Alumni), 7 p.m.*
June 28 — Lincoln Potters (Harry Potter Night), 6:30 p.m.
June 29 — Lincoln Potters (Mascot Day), 12:30 p.m.*
July 1 — Marysville Giants (Camo Night), 7 p.m.*
July 2 — Marysville Giants, 7 p.m.
July 4 — Solano Mudcats (Independence Day, Wear Red, White and Blue), 7 p.m.*
July 5 — Solano Mudcats, 6:30 p.m.
July 6 — Solano Mudcats, 12:30 p.m.*
July 11 — West Coast Kings (Wear Your Favorite Jersey Night), 7 p.m.*
July 12 — West Coast Kings (Alumni Fest and Parent Night), 6:30 p.m.
July 12 — West Coast Kings (Dairy Princess Day), 12:30 p.m.*
July 15 — Seals Baseball, 7 p.m.*
July 16 — Seals Baseball (Jersey Scoops/Food for People Night), 7 p.m.
July 18 — Healdsdburg Prune Packers (Western Night), 7 p.m.*
July 19 — Healdsdburg Prune Packers (Pajama Night), 6:30 p.m.
July 20 — Healdsdburg Prune Packers (Little League Day), 12:30 p.m.*
July 22 — Bercovich Honors (90s Night), 7 p.m.
July 23 — Bercovich Honors, 7 p.m.*
July 25 — Medford Rogues (Christmas and Hanukkah in July), 7 p.m.*
July 26 — Medford Rogues (Golf Tournament/Pirate Night/Italian Heritage Night), 6:30 p.m.
July 27 — Medford Rogues (Sequoia Humane Society Day), 12:30 p.m.*
July 29 — TBD
July 29 — TBD
July 30 — TBD
Aug. 2 — Placer County Peloteros (Fan Appreciation Night/’70s Night/Mustache Night), 6:30 p.m.*
Aug. 3 — Placer County Peloteros (Aloha Sunday, See You in 2026!), 12:30 p.m.*
* = Denotes an appearance by the World Famous Crab Grass Band
Tickets are $10 for adults, $4 for children ages 3-12. Season passes cost $150 for adults, $75 for children. Tickets are available at Wildberries Marketplace and at humboldtcrabs.com, but not at the ballpark.
Scott Gourley (he/him) is a local writer and year-round baseball fan. This story is reprinted with the permission of the Humboldt Historian and the Humboldt Historical Society.
This article appears in Humboldt Crabs Baseball.