Photos by Humboldt Crabs Baseball

By Ray Hamill — Another memorable summer for the Humboldt Crabs concluded over the weekend with a two-game series split against Cal State Peloteros.

The Crabs took the opening game 5-0 on Saturday night, before dropping their final game of the summer on Sunday, 8-6.

After Sunday’s game, the coaching staff handed out their annual end-of-season awards, including one award that was hotly contested.

“We four legitimate contenders for MVP,” Crabs manager Robin Guiver said. “Which was part of the reason we had such a good team. It was the hardest award to chose that I’ve ever had.”

In the end, the coaches named Cameron Sewell team MVP over Keenan Morris, Adam Enyart and Tyler Howard, each of whom also enjoyed stellar summers at the Arcata Ball Park.

Sewell, who hit his team-leading ninth home run of the summer in Saturday’s win, averaged a team-high .372 at the plate with 11 doubles and 43 RBIs.

Three local players were included among the five award winners, highlighting what a good summer it was for the local contingent.

Morris was named the team’s best defensive player, while Myles Standish took home the best pitcher award and Nolan Hamilton was handed the coaches award.

The ever-consistent Morris was outstanding at third base and also made his presence felt at the plate, averaging .317 in the lead-off spot and walking 26 times, second only to Sewell.

Standish became the team’s go-to pitcher and a regular Friday night starter.

He finished the year 6-1 with an ERA of 2.76 and also posted team-highs in innings (52) and strikeouts (59).

Hamilton, who was born in Humboldt County but grew up in Arizona, also made his presence felt on his return to the North Coast.

He appeared in 24 games and batted .254 with 12 RBIs.

Rounding out the awards, Enyart was named the team’s offensive player of the season after playing a hugely influential role.

The Bakersfield native, who plays for St. Mary’s College, was a dual threat for the Crabs with impressive seasons both on the mound and at the plate.

He averaged .363 with his bat, which was second only to Sewell, with a team-best 56 RBIs and 14 doubles.

He also was 4-0 on the hill with two saves in 13 appearances out of the bullpen and had an ERA of 4.42.

Overall, it was another good season for the team which finished up 39-11, with all but four of their losses coming against Healdsburg, including two in the best-of-three league championship series.

And as always the fans flocked to the Arcata ball Park in huge numbers and seemed to enjoy the occasion every bit as much as the players.

“It was a good summer for sure,” Guiver said. “We had great crowds, it was a good group of dudes and we won a lot of close games. I was definitely happy with the end result.”

Only four teams — Healdsburg, the Lincoln Potters, the West Coast Kings and Cal State Peloteros — managed to get the better of the Crabs.

“We went 39-11 against really good competition,” Guiver said. “I can’t think of anybody we played that was a bad team. We had to show up every game.”

The race for the Pacific Empire League championship series went right down to the final day of league play for the second straight summer, all of which added to the excitement.

But this year, instead of placing third, the Crabs qualified for the championship series thanks to a three-game sweep of the Medford Rogues in their final league games.

The league format still needs adjusting, with teams playing a different number of league games, but since its inception last summer the PEL has given the Crabs and their fans an added dimension to the season.

It was also a Crabs team that came together well as the season progressed and a group of players that improved both individually and as a team.

“As a group, they talked the game a lot,” Guiver said. “They communicated very well with each other on the field.

“And they didn’t give up. It was a very resilient team. We had some kids that knew how to win. It was a good mature group of kids.

“I’m proud of these guys. I’m very proud of the coaches and I’m very proud of the team.”

The fans also played their part.

After the team arrived back in Arcata at 4 a.m. on Saturday morning, just hours after losing the PEL championship series in Healdsburg, the players could have been forgiven for being deflated and coming out flat for Saturday night’s game.

However, with more than 1,100 fans showing up for the showdown, the players responded and found a way to lift their game.

“That gave us tons of energy,” Guiver said of the crowd. “It blew me away and it’s so telling. That was pretty awesome.”