Eastern Illinois baseball has added nine position players to its 2024 roster.

Joining the Panthers are Carter Allen, Tyler Castro, Jake Ferguson, Danny Infante, Lucas Loos, Michael O'Conor, Trenton Pallas, Quade Peters, and Sam Wiese.

EIU won a school record 38 games last season and played in its third NCAA Regional at the NCAA Division I level.

Carter Allen
Carter Allen makes his way to EIU from Alvin Community College. In 2023, the catcher played in 41 games. He batted for an average of .292 with a .384 OBP and .496 SLG. He collected 10 doubles, six home runs, and 26 RBIs, while also stealing five bases.

Tyler Castro
Tyler Castro joins the Panthers from McHenry County College. In 2023, Castro played in 51 games, hitting .376 at the plate with a .466 OBP and .500 SLG. Castro racked up 11 doubles, three triples and two home runs, while tallying 41 RBIs. He also proved to be a threat on the base path, recording 20 stolen bases. A versatile outfielder and infielder, Castro recorded 46 putouts on the season. He was a 2023 NJCAA First-Team All-Region selection as a designated hitter.

Jake Ferguson
Also an infielder, Jake Ferguson joins the Panthers after spending last year at the College of Marin. He played in 42 games, batting .342 at the plate with a .474 OBP and .437 SLG. Ferguson hit 13 doubles and two home runs while recording 34 RBIs and eight stolen bases. Defensively, he was responsible for 103 putouts.

Danny Infante
Infielder Danny Infante makes his way to Charleston from Cloud County Community College. In 2023, Infante played in 60 games, in which he recorded a .346 batting average, .430 OBP, and .553 SLG. He hit 13 doubles, three triples and eight home runs while collecting 66 RBIs and seven stolen bases. Over his two seasons at Cloud, Infante recorded 99 putouts in the field.

Lucas Loos
Lucas Loos joins EIU as a transfer from Oakland University. The third baseman and outfielder played in 40 games for the Golden Grizzlies in 2023, a season in which he compiled a .315 batting average, .383 OBP, and .537 SLG. Loos hit nine doubles and five home runs while plating 37 runs on the season. He tallied 41 putouts with an unblemished .1000 fielding percentage. Prior to Oakland, Loos played at John Wood Community College, where he was named Second-Team All-MWAC in 2022 after batting .361 with 14 homers and 45 RBIs.

Michael O'Conor
Michael O'Conor joins the Panthers after transferring from the University of Illinois – Springfield. In 2023, the infielder played in 37 games and finished with a .328 AVG, .406 OBP and .642 SLG. He hit 10 doubles and 11 homers and tallied up 47 RBIs on the season. On defense, O'Conor recorded 26 putouts. 

Trenton Pallas
Trenton Pallas comes to EIU as a transfer from High Point University. Last season, Pallas appeared in 37 games, starting 23 of them in the outfield for the Panthers. He hit .256 with six RBIs and two doubles, with a season high three hits against Bryant on February 19th. In the field, he recorded 56 putouts with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage. Prior to High Point, Pallas spent two seasons at Allan Hancock College, where he hit a combined .301 over 48 games. He hit .355 in 2022 with a homer and 11 RBIs.

Quade Peters
Outfielder Quade Peters joins the EIU program after a stint at Iowa Central Community College, where he played in 55 games last season. During the 2023 campaign, Peters recorded a .378 batting average, .469 OBP, and .590 SLG.  He hit 12 doubles, six three-baggers, and seven homers while batting in 45 runs. Peters also displayed his speed on the base path, as he stole 23 bases on the year. Defensively, he recorded 73 total putouts with a .1000 fielding percentage in conference play.

Sam Wiese
First baseman and outfielder Sam Wiese comes to EIU from Hesston College. Wiese played in 47 games in 2023, a campaign that saw him hit an outstanding .399 at the plate with a .489 OBP and .753 SLG. He recorded 20 doubles and 12 homers, with 42 runs batted in. In the field, Wiese collected 96 putouts over two seasons at Hesston.