Intriguing right-hander Noah Song will report to the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday after transferring his U.S. Navy Academy service from active duty to selective reserves, the team announced.

Song was claimed by the Phillies from the Boston Red Sox in December’s Rule 5 draft. He last pitched professionally for Boston in 2019 at the low Class-A level.

The 25-year-old Song graduated from the Naval Academy in 2019 and was required to serve five years in the Navy. He attempted to get a waiver to forgo his military obligation from the Department of Defense and it was denied.

By moving to selected reserve status, Song will be required to perform one weekend of service a month and two weeks for the calendar year. That opened the door to resume his pitching career.

Due to Rule 5 draft rules, Song must be on the Phillies’ 26-man active roster. If not, he must be returned to the Red Sox.

Song was a fourth-round pick by the Red Sox in 2019 and compiled a 1.06 ERA in 17 innings over seven appearances for the Lowell Spinners.

At Navy, Song went 32-13 with a 2.37 ERA and nine shutouts in 58 appearances (54 starts). He struck out 428 over 334 1/3 innings.

Song was a finalist for the 2019 Golden Spikes Award, which goes to college baseball’s top player.

–Field Level Media