Reports surfaced on Sunday that infield prospect John Peck would be promoted to Detroit to make his major league debut on the road against the Minnesota Twins. The Tigers seventh round pick back in 2023 out of Pepperdine University, the recently turned 24-year-old was always a quality defender, but over the past year he’s broken out with the bat. He reached Triple-A Toledo in late June, and now that rapid rise will culminate with a promotion to the major leagues.
The Tigers draft strategy under amateur
scouting director Mark Connor, who has done a pretty brilliant job overall, has often seen them selecting undervalued athletic middle infielders and center fielders with contact skills for cheap draft bonuses. The idea is that by stockpiling this type of player to save money for other more prominent names in the draft, the Tigers will get more bang for their buck overall. If just one player like this blooms in terms of plate discipline and power in their mid-20’s per draft, these classes are going to turn out much stronger than just the big bonus names.
The 2023 draft is the first test of this strategy, and both outfielder Brett Callahan and infielder Peck are the prominent examples of just how well it can work with good player development. The Tigers already have the likely AL Rookie of the Year in Kevin McGonigle, along with blue chip center fielder Max Clark in the big leagues out of the 2023 draft class. You can’t do much better with two first round picks, and now Callahan and Peck, each of whom received a bonus under $250,000 have reached the Show with a chance to help turn their draft class into perhaps the best in team history.
Peck was Pepperdine’s starting shortstop when the Tigers paid him $222,500 to sign as their seventh round pick. Coming from a lower tier baseball power, and flashing minimal home run power, Peck’s value was mostly tied up in his glove on draft day. He hit six home runs in 49 games during his junior year, so he didn’t get any significant national attention. Frankly his 21.7 percent strikeout rate didn’t really fit the profile of a light-hitting, contact first athlete, but the Tigers liked his raw power and his chances to develop in pro ball, and they’ve been proven correct so far.
Even so, there are still major questions about Peck’s bat and whether he’ll be able to adapt to major league pitching. The Tigers are moving him up very aggressively here, and it’s not as though he tore Double-A and Triple-A up this year to a degree that would lend a lot of confidence to a fast promotion. Peck showed out pretty well back in spring training, building on a modest 2025 breakout that saw him jump to Double-A late in the season. He arrived in camp with more good muscle on his six-foot frame, and the adjustments he’s made over two seasons to lower his hands and simplify his path to the baseball continued to pay dividends as he made plenty of hard contact in camp and showed his ability to drive balls to the opposite field as well.
The Tigers sent him out to Erie to continue to build on his 25 games look there at the end of the 2025 season. Peck provided some confirmation of spring impressions by cranking 10 homers and stealing 19 bags in 58 games there from April through late June. He still struck out quite a bit for a player without huge power numbers, punching out 25 percent of the time, while walking just 5.5 percent of the time. More selectivity was required for Peck to avoid getting himself out on the ground a lot, but that didn’t really show up at all. He did some damage, but he still hit the ball on the ground nearly 50 percent of the time he put something in play. He slashed .285/ .328 ./511 for the SeaWolves, and the Tigers decided to move him, along with Callahan, up to Toledo in late June.
Peck never got a chance to settle in at the Triple-A level. He suffered a leg injury in just his second game with the Mud Hens on June 24, and missed about six weeks. The nature of the injury was never made public, but we’re guessing hamstring. Peck only returned to Toledo from the injured list and a rehab stint last Tuesday, playing one series with the Hens. There’s nothing wrong with throwing him into the deep end for a month since he’ll be added to the 40-man roster this fall, but he’s basically skipping Triple-A and doesn’t have the discipline and contact numbers to justify such a rapid promotion.
Defensively, Peck can play shortstop but he has some trouble there throwing on the run from tough angles. He’s very good at both third and second base, occasionally misplaying a ball, but making some stellar plays as well. His arm strength is plenty, but again he can get a little wild at times throwing on the move. Right now, I don’t really view him as a future everyday player, but rather more of a right-handed hitting Zach McKinstry with a little more raw power to cash in if he can start putting more balls in the air to the pull side.
Still, defensive versatility is really valuable, and here it’s allowing Peck to skip right over a more highly regarded hitting prospect in Max Anderson. Anderson plays second base but isn’t particularly good there and doesn’t have the speed, agility, or arm to really handle the left side of the infield at all. The Tigers don’t really have a spot for Anderson right now. Peck isn’t really an everyday shortstop but he can hang there, and he’s at least an average defender everywhere else and can probably learn to play some corner outfield as well.
Rosters don’t expand until Tuesday, when the active rosters grow from 26 to 28 players, so someone will have to be demoted if Peck is coming up for Monday night’s game. Veteran outfielder Corey Julks seems the most likely player to be designated for assignment, to make a spot on the 40-man and active rosters for Peck.
Expect Peck to struggle at the plate in September. He’s looked good since coming off the injured list, but again we’re talking about six Triple-A games with which to acclimate to that level, let alone the major leagues. Peck controls the zone decently, doesn’t chase excessively, and makes plenty of contact in the strike zone. It’s just that a lot of that contact is on the ground. He’s not so fleet of foot that he’s going to pressure infielders and beat out a lot of infield hits.
John Peck is very much still a work in progress. His defensive versatility, above average speed and raw power, and a solid approach at the plate say he has a solid chance to develop a lot further as a hitter and potentially turn himself into an everyday player, or close to it, but he has a lot of work ahead of him to get to that point. There are going to be growing pains. Hopefully he has some good moments, takes his lumps, and can carry some lessons into the offseason that will help him make the Opening Day roster in 2027. Just don’t expect a whole lot from the bat right now. Playing with the major league club will give him exposure to the best pitching in the world, and allow the coaching staff to work with him both on his hitting but to clean up some of his actions defensively. The opportunity for development is right there for him, but this is definitely still a work in progress.
