Red Sox sign Naval Academy grad Song

DETROIT -- The Red Sox are willing to wait for Noah Song.

They signed the 6-foot-4 right-hander out of the Naval Academy on Saturday, the team announced. Song was their fourth-round pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, despite the fact that he will likely not be able to commit to baseball on a full-time basis until the fall of 2021.

Song, 22, will report to Pensacola, Fla., on Nov. 1, to begin training as a flight officer. He won’t be able to petition to serve the rest of his five–year commitment as a reservist until two years from now.

But he will begin his professional career at Short Season Class A Lowell this season.

Song is the highest-drafted senior from the Navy. The Academy’s previous highest-drafted graduates, center fielder Alex Azor (2012) and pitcher Stephen Moore ('15), weren’t picked until the 10th round. Only two Naval graduates have played in the big leagues: Cardinals pitcher Mitch Harris (2015) and Washington Senators pitcher Nemo Gaines (1921).

Song has a mid-90’s fastball and a solid array of secondary pitches. He went 11-1 with a 1.44 ERA and a 161-31 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 94 innings as a senior in 2019, and was one of four finalists for the Golden Spikes Award.