There’s a must watch for baseball coaches and really, all true baseball fans.

Lou’s Team: The Story of the Humboldt Crabs is a 2026 documentary about a semi-pro baseball team, mostly of college players, in Arcata (and sometimes Eureka), California on the coast near the Oregon Border.

The documentary is written and directed by Conor Fitzgerald who grew up with the Humboldt Crabs as an inspirational part of his life. Along with Dean and Linda Fitzgerald, they have a created a masterclass on all aspects of amateur baseball including program building, culture building, facilities, recruiting and the heart behind the baseball experience.

Lou is Lou Bonimini who founded the team and served as manager for an incredible 44 years. He partnered for many years with Ned Barsuglia who served as an ace scout/general manager. Lou and Ned and so many others are featured in the incredibly researched doc with footage and photos and interviews that chronicle all 82 years of the Crabs, from 1945 to the present.

There are many highlights, including:

• The incredible story of Jack Fimple and his journey from the Crabs to the Coast Guard to the major leagues.
• The Crab Grass Band who play passionately in the stands at home games.
• Their streak in 1985, where they won their first 47 regular season games, before falling in their last game to finish 47-1.
• The few local kids and the immense pride of growing up watching the Crabs, then getting to play for them.
• Their great tradition of winning the California title and traveling to the NBC World Series in Wichita, Kan.
• The 73 Major Leaguers who wore Humboldt Crabs uniforms, as well as legendary college coaches Augie Garrido (Cal-State Fullerton and Texas) and Mark Marquess (Stanford).
• The passion of the players, coaches and fans, summed up by a former coach:

“You’ve got to come up here and smell it, feel it, and live it.
If you don’t know Humboldt Crabs Baseball, you’re missing out.”

Lou’s Team: The Story of the Humboldt Crabs can be watched for free on YouTube.