Keith Naylor, a two-year starting outfielder for the New Jersey City University baseball team, has signed a professional free agent minor league baseball contract with the St. Louis Cardinals. He signed his free-agent deal on June 19, when he left for Johnson City, TN, where he will play rookie ball for the Johnson City Cardinals in the 10-team Appalachian League.

Naylor is the second NJCU player to sign a free agent contract in the past three seasons, following in the footsteps of Jonathan Thomas who was inked by the Kansas City Royals in June 2004. Thomas spent two years playing for the Arizona Royals, and is now a second baseman for the Newark Bears.

Overall, Naylor becomes the eighth NJCU player drafted or signed to a professional free agent baseball contract since 1976.

A native of Sayreville, Naylor batted .258 for NJCU in 2006  while leading the team in homeruns (4) and RBIs (25). He collected 33 hits (33-128), 53 total bases and scored 22 runs, while stealing 10 bases in 11 attempts. He added two doubles and three triples, with a .331 on-base and .414 slugging percentage. Naylor led the team in multiple-RBI games (8) and contributed nine multi-hit efforts.

In addition to leading NJCU in RBIs and homeruns, Naylor broke the single-season record by being hit by 13 pitches, which ranked second in the New Jersey Athletic Conference. He ranked among the leaders in nine major categories for the Gothic Knights (15-25), including listing second in steals, tied for second in runs, third in hits and total bases, tied for third in triples, and fourth in slugging.

In just 49 games over two seasons for NJCU, he ranks tied for sixth in school history in career hit by pitches (14) and he is tied for ninth in homeruns (6).

Naylor is the second member of his family to play minor league baseball. His older brother, Martesse Robinson, previously enjoyed a professional baseball career before becoming a scout.