Photos by Matt Filar/Humboldt Crabs Baseball – Myles Standish in action for the Humboldt Crabs this season.

By Ray Hamill — The Humboldt Crabs have not featured as large a group of local players in recent times as they are this summer, and just about all of them are making a big impact.

The Crabs are enjoying a stellar season and with two weeks to go they remain right in the mix for a coveted spot in this year’s Pacific Empire League championship series.

If results go their way this weekend against the league-leading Healdsburg Prune Packers, the Crabs might not only qualify for the championship series but get to host a series game or two at the Arcata Ball Park.

And with 10 local players on this year’s roster, that would make the occasion even more special for local baseball fans.

The local players include six pitchers — Cedar Cline, Brock Lenhardt, Cameron Saso, Myles Standish, Miles Oliver and Cody Collins — as well as four outfield players, Kennan Morris, Nolan Hamilton, Cayden Lee and Parker Rodgers.

Morris and Standish, both Eureka High graduates, are among the most impressive players on the entire team this summer.

Morris has excelled in the lead-off spot and at third base, and he is batting .338, having made a team-high 32 appearances.

He also has walked 19 times, which is third best on the team, and is tied for the team lead in doubles with 10.

“I could say this about three or four players, but he might be our best player this season,” Crabs manager Robin Guiver said of Morris. “He’s been as good as anybody.”

The same could be said of Standish, who has become the team’s regular Friday night starter and has been a leading force on the mound.

The former Eureka Logger leads the team with five wins in seven starts and has yet to post a loss on the hill, with an ERA of 2.76.

He also has a team-high 48 strikeouts in a team-high 39 innings, which is 13 more Ks than anyone else on the roster.

Former Arcata Tiger and College of the Redwoods player Miles Oliver also has impressed on the hill, along with former McKinleyville Panther Cameron Saso, the latter of whom rejoined the team midway through the season and has proved to be a great addition.

Photos by Matt Filar/Humboldt Crabs Baseball – Keenan Morris

“We were super fortunate to get Cam Saso back,” Guiver said. “I like him as a person and on the field.”

Saso has made four appearances so far, including one start, and has allowed just four hits in 10.1 innings while striking out eight.

He is 1-0.

Oliver, meanwhile, has quickly established himself as one of the team’s go-to midweek pitchers and appears to be relishing the role after a big spring with CR.

He has thrown 32.1 innings with 35 strikeouts, both of which are second most on the team, with a record of 4-0 in seven starts and an ERA of 3.34.

Collins and Cline both also joined the team midway through the season and each also has had a positive impact on a pitching staff that has grown in stature as the season has progressed.

Collins, a Fortuna High graduate, has appeared in eight games, mostly out of the bullpen, and is 1-1 with a save and an ERA of 5.19.

Cline, an Arcata High grad, has made just two appearances and has yet to allow an earned run.

CR’s Lenhardt also has made an impact on the staff, making eight appearances, including two starts.

He has been one of the team’s most reliable arms out of the bullpen and is 2-1 with an ERA of 1.47 in 18.1 innings.

Hamilton, Lee and Rodgers have also all had an impact at the plate.

Lee, a former St. Bernard’s Crusader, is batting .268 in 19 appearances with three doubles and eight RBIs, while Hamilton, who was born in Humboldt before moving to Arizona at a young age, is averaging .263 in 19 games with 10 RBIs on his return to the North Coast.

Rodgers, meanwhile, is batting .233 in 18 games and has displayed a keen eye with 17 walks, which leads the team among players with 20 or less appearances.

Rodgers played at Eureka High and CR.

The Humboldt Crabs will be back in action at the Arcata Ball Park this weekend, when they host the Healdsburg Prune Packers in a key three-game league series, which gets under way on Friday night.