ST. LOUIS – Former University of Missouri-St Louis pitcher Eli Cartwright recently signed a professional contract with the Gateway Grizzlies of the Frontier League to continue his playing career.

Cartwright is coming off an All-American season for the Tritons in which he went 8-3 with a 3.00 earned run average and tied the UMSL single season record for strikeouts in a season with 101. He was the Great Lakes Valley Conference's Pitcher of the Year, a first team All-GLVC selection, was a first team All-Region selection by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA), the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) and the American Baseball Coaches Association.

Cartwright was named a third team All-American by the NCBWA and the D2CCA.

"I couldn't be happier for Eli and this opportunity," UMSL head baseball coach Scott Eul said. "He has worked incredibly hard for this opportunity and I am thrilled to see what he can do with it. 

"Eli was one of, if not the hardest worker we had on our pitching staff," Eul stated. "He was one of the most diligent pitchers to his process I have seen in my 10 years as a head coach.  He was our ace of our staff from his very first start this year and a huge reason for our success we had.  I am looking forward to following his career at the professional level." 

"This season was truly unbelievable," Cartwright said. "Coming to UMSL, I didn't know exactly what to expect, but I trusted God and his plan for me and I'm glad I did. 

"This was the most fun I've ever had playing baseball. I'm beyond thankful for the opportunity Coach Eul and the staff gave me," he continued. I built lifelong friendships and made memories I'll never forget. I'm forever grateful for this experience and honored to be on a team that accomplished so much. 

He becomes the 29th player in program history to sign a professional contract and the first since Trent Anderson signed with the Great Fall Voyagers in 2024.

The Grizzlies play in the Frontier League's Midwest West Division. The Frontier League is a Major League Baseball Professional Partner League. The Frontier League is a 16-team league with four divisions that spans from Canada to Mississippi.