Reed Peters, who won two state championships, sent 31 players onto professional baseball and was national coach of the year as head coach of San Joaquin Delta College, is the new head coach of the Pacific Tigers baseball program, University of the Pacific announced Friday.

During his 17 years as head coach of the Mustangs, Peters won the California Community College Athletic Association state championship in 2011 and 2018, was the state runner up in 2009, 2014, 2015 and this past season and had seven Final Four and 10 Elite Eight appearances. He also mentored 19 All-Americans and of the 31 players who signed professional contracts, three are currently in Major League Baseball: Nick Avila with the San Francisco Giants, Robert Gasser with the Milwaukee Brewers and Dean Kremer with the Baltimore Orioles.

Peters was a four-time Big 8 Coach of the Year, two-time Northern California Coach of the Year and the 2018 American Baseball Coaches Association National Coach of the Year in 2018. His record at Delta College was 386-167.

"The Pacific Tigers baseball program has a tried-and-true winner in Reed Peters,” said Athletic Director Adam Tschuor. “His proven track record as a developer of talent turned a program that hadn't made a playoff appearance in 20 years into a year-in, year-out championship contender nearly every year of his 17-year career at Delta, including two state titles.

“I am even more excited to have someone who is undeniably beloved in the Stockton community. That, along with the success he'll lead our Tigers to on the field, will galvanize this program into a West Coast Conference Champion and beyond," Tschuor said

Under Peters, the Mustangs earned a Top 5 national ranking by Perfect Game five times and were No. 1 in the NorCal ranking in back-to-back years in 2018 and 2019.

"I'd like to thank President Christopher Callahan and Director of Athletics Adam Tschuor for the opportunity to be a part of the baseball program at University of the Pacific,” Peters said. “I'm looking forward to the challenge ahead and excited to continue my coaching career here in this community that means so much to me. While every journey presents challenges, my staff and I will work tirelessly to develop well rounded players and build a winning culture at Pacific.”

Peters has proven capable of turning a program around. The Mustangs had an 8-36 record prior to his arrival.

“The biggest thing Pacific baseball needs right now is a change in culture,” Peters said. “Players don’t always start out great; we have to develop them, and that’s what we did at Delta. Furthermore, we’re going to have to outwork our opponents, whether that be in the weight room, on the field or in our everyday lives. Once we can establish the right work ethic, we’ll be able to change the entire mindset of the program, and that’s where it all starts.”

Before joining Delta, Peters enjoyed success at each of his previous stops, including four seasons at Feather River College where he compiled a 107-58 record, two conference championships, four straight Top-20 rankings and playoff appearances, three Coach of the Year honors (2005, 2006, & 2007), and an unprecedented 25-0 Golden Valley Conference record in 2007.

He also coached at the Air Force Academy from 1999-2003, Colby Community College in Colby, Kansas and his alma mater UNLV, where he began his coaching career. 

Before coaching, Peters played professionally from 1987-93 and was a 12th-round draft choice of the California Angels in 1987. His appointment makes him the 20th head coach in Pacific baseball history, which began in 1945.

Peters is already familiar with Pacific and its baseball field as Delta played two seasons at Klein Family Field when its own home field was under renovation. He said the opportunity to coach on campus permanently was one he couldn’t pass up.

“Pacific has plenty of enticing pieces to be successful. I use the word ‘great’ a lot to describe it: great school, great education, great people, great facilities and a lot more great things to offer, so the vision is to get baseball back on track,” Peters said, adding that he loves calling Stockton home.

“I live in a great neighborhood, I raised my kids here, the weather is great, the community is awesome, and my family has made a lot of close friends. Stockton is where I want to be.”