From Pepperdine to Tigers camp, Peck (No. 16 prospect) making waves

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LAKELAND, Fla. -- The scouting report on John Peck minutes after the Tigers drafted him out of Pepperdine in 2023 has aged well.

"Underperformed [in 2023] but has been one of the best players on the West Coast for years,” the message read. “Speed, power with more to get, bat speed, athletic middle infielder. Great kid, hard worker and great family.

”And he had the best fielding and hitting coach for the last three years.”

That last part was the dry sense of humor that made Danny Worth a clubhouse favorite during his five years as a Tigers shortstop. The first part sounded like a description of Worth’s playing days.

That’s not a coincidence.

“He’s helped me a lot,” said Peck, the Tigers' No. 16 prospect per MLB Pipeline. “He was a big influence on me defensively, just because he’s done it at a high level. He was a good guy to have around at Pepperdine.”

Worth is a quiet reason Peck has been one of the most impressive prospects in Tigers camp so far this spring. It’s not just that the former Pepperdine coach worked with Peck to develop his game. It’s that Worth saw something in him that other Division I programs missed.

With a gorgeous Malibu campus and a baseball field that overlooks the ocean, Pepperdine is a school of choice for many. But for Peck, there were no other Division I options.

“I was just small in high school,” the six-foot, 185-pound Peck said. “I was tiny. And my junior year I got hurt, so I didn’t really play. So I was just, I don’t know, a late bloomer.”

Peck hadn’t hit his growth spurt when he showed up at a Pepperdine baseball day camp between his junior and senior seasons.

“Athletic shortstop who looked like an athlete we’d like to see 20+ pounds on and coach,” Worth recalled.

The COVID pandemic limited Peck’s senior season to eight games, but Worth saw enough to recruit him. Pepperdine already had a top shortstop recruit in Thomas Saggese, but when the Rangers drafted and signed Saggese out of high school, Peck got a chance.

Once Peck got on campus, Worth worked with him to adjust his swing mechanics. He hit just .256 as a freshman, but with seven homers in 45 games. He had a big summer ball campaign, then broke out as a sophomore at Pepperdine, batting .361 with seven homers, 33 RBIs and a .995 OPS in 40 games.

That kind of sophomore season draws attention from bigger-name programs looking for transfers. Peck stayed at Pepperdine and went to the Tigers as a seventh-round Draft pick the next summer. He was the Tigers’ highest draft pick from Pepperdine since Worth, a second-rounder in 2007.

Peck has climbed the Tigers’ system quickly, closing last year at Double-A Erie. He hit .301/.359/.433 with 27 doubles, 11 homers, 69 RBIs and 19 stolen bases between the SeaWolves and High-A West Michigan. But it’s his elite defense that earned him an invite to Major League camp.

While all eyes have been on top prospect Kevin McGonigle in camp, Peck has made arguably the strongest impression of any infielder. He made a couple difficult plays look easy in the Tigers’ opening loss Saturday.

“He has innate timing and he has sure hands,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “Those two things with an accurate arm translate very well, level to level. Those don’t leave you. The speed of the game doesn’t impact him.”

That sense of timing, Peck said, came from playing baseball year-round in California. He learned how to hop right before the pitch to be in position to field. He learned to read pitches and anticipate swings. But it also came from a tough standard.

“I just take a lot of pride in it,” Peck said. “I don’t know, I expect … perfection out of myself, and I hold myself to a high standard. I expect myself to make every play.”

Sounds a lot like Worth, who could be his own toughest critic as a player.

”He checks all the boxes,” Worth said of Peck. “Great guy, great teammate, quiet lead-by-example type. Tough as nails, Great worker, competitor in practice. Comes from a great family.”

Worth turned pro again himself this winter, joining the Padres as an infield coordinator, but he continued to work with Peck.

“He’s really good [teaching] both sides,” Peck said. “Obviously he was a big leaguer, so he knows a lot. I mean, he’s really good.”

Worth had more credit for Peck’s work ethic.

”Helped me this offseason clear some trees in my yard with a hand saw and some extension cords,” Worth texted with a laugh.

Hinch was Worth’s manager in his last Major League stop in Houston in 2016. He played briefly in Korea before returning to his alma mater as a coach in 2018.

And now, Worth has helped develop a shortstop prospect for Hinch in Detroit.