West Roxbury’s Packy Naughton enjoying his next step at High-A

Packy Naughton (West Roxbury, Mass.) was a ninth-round pick out of Virginia Tech in 2017.

Hailing from West Roxbury, Mass., and having attended Boston Latin School, a stone’s throw from Fenway Park, Packy Naughton was a diehard Red Sox fan growing up.

So, when he was drafted out of Virginia Tech by the Cincinnati Reds in the ninth round of the 2017 draft, long-time loyalties were certainly tested not only for him, but family and friends in the process.

“It’s funny, when I first got drafted it was a little weird putting on a Reds uniform,” said Naughton, now in his third season of professional baseball. “All that was missing was the 'o-x.' Close enough.”

Long over the need to shift allegiances, the 23-year-old southpaw entered this season with the Daytona (Fla.) Tortugas, the Reds High-A affiliate and a step up from where he was a year ago thanks in part to a five-pitch arsenal that he has a strong grasp of.