The 2013 season marked the fifth year at Indiana State for assistant coach Tyler Herbst. Herbst was hired in June of 2008 as the Recruiting Coordinator and Pitching Coach for the Sycamores. He brings a wealth of experience in the Missouri Valley Conference as well as in Midwest recruiting to the program. The Sycamores have seen winning seasons in each of Herbst's five campaigns in Terre Haute, their longest string of consecutive winning seasons since 1977-1993.
Herbst managed the Indiana State pitching staff to a 3.50 team ERA in 2013, including junior Sean Manaea's record-setting season on the mound. Manaea set the program record for single-season ERA with a 1.47 ERA in 2013 and was drafted by the Kansas City Royals with No. 34 pick in the 2013 MLB Draft.
Since Herbst came to Indiana State in 2009, Indiana State has had multiple MLB Draft selections in every season (2009-13), their longest stretch since 1983-89.
Indiana State claimed their first outright Missouri Valley Conference championship in 2012, going 41-19 on the season and making their first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1995.
Herbst worked with the 2012 pitching staff that combined for a 3.25 ERA on the season, the second-best mark in school history. Junior Dakota Bacus led the Sycamores on the mound and was drafted the in ninth round by Oakland following the season.
In his five full seasons working with the Sycamore pitching staff, ISU has seen five hurlers selected in the Major League Baseball Draft and two more sign as a free agent.
One of Herbst's most successful efforts was assisting former ISU pitcher Jacob Petricka in improving his draft stock from the 2009 season to the 2010 campaign. Petricka was selected in the 34th round in 2009, but after another season with the ISU program, Petricka was selected in the second round by the Chicago White Sox with the 63rd overall pick.
Herbst spent two seasons as an assistant coach at The University of Arkansas-Little Rock before coming to ISU. While at Little Rock, he had the opportunity to serve under nationally recognized pitching coach, Jim Lawler, a widely-known name in the world of college baseball whose resume includes 22 seasons as a member of the Texas A&M baseball staff and National Assistant Coach of the Year accolades in 2003.
In his two seasons spent at UALR, Herbst helped the program sign 16 new position players for the 07-08 season, and double its win total in the Sun Belt Conference. He also helped four players earn Pitchers of the Week honors, developed two All-Conference Selections, and had three players drafted and signed to professional contracts, Catcher Robert Taylor (25th round, Florida Marlins), Catcher Brett Lawler (42nd round, Florida Marlins), and LHP Steve Gilgenbach (47th round, Kansas City Royals).
Off the field, the program received the top academic team award for the 06-07 academic year. Herbst’s additional duties also included coordinating the program’s budget, fundraising, academic affairs, and recruiting.
Herbst spent one season at Wabash Valley Junior College 05-06. There he was the pitching coach and recruiting coordinator, helping the Warriors to a 37-17 record and a second place finish in the Great River Athletic Conference. Three players earned All-Region honors, while pitcher Alex Love established a school record for wins, going 11-0. He also saw two of his players drafted, outfielder Derrick Walker (23rd round, Arizona Diamondbacks) and RHP PJ Thomas (49th round, Boston Red Sox).
Herbst’s only recruited class at WVC produced two All Conference players, Josh Godfrey & Jared Delong (Conference Player of the Year), along with three draft selections, OF Reece Cheatham (43rd round, Chicago White Sox), RHP Aaron Barrett (20th round, Minnesota Twins), and LHP Josh Godfrey (38th round, Arizona Diamondbacks). Twelve players also moved onto Division I Schools.
Herbst is also no stranger to the Missouri Valley Conference. He joined an Evansville program that had won only 22 games in the 2002 season, and then helped guide the Aces in building their victory total each season, including 24-31 in 2003, 28-32 in '04 and 35-23 in '05. The 35 victories were the third-most at UE since the school entered the Missouri Valley Conference, and ranked seventh best in the school's 27-year Division I history. UE not only turned heads in the MVC, but also nationally, as they were ranked in the nation’s top 30 in three of the four major college baseball polls during the course of the season. The Aces were ranked as high as 27th nationally during the 2005 season.
During his time on the UE bench, Herbst played a role in producing two Freshman All-Americans, a First-Team Summer All-American, 10 All-MVC players, one MVC batting Champion, one MVC Newcomer of the Year, and three draft picks, LHP Michael Greenhouse (28th round, Chicago Cubs), 1B Erik Lis (9th round, Minnesota Twins), and OF Cody Strait (12th round, Cincinnati Reds).
In the summer of 2003, Herbst joined Athletes in Action and helped lead them to a runner-up finish in the Alaska Baseball League and a berth in the National Baseball Congress World Series finishing seventh out of 48 teams. Five players were drafted or signed professional contracts including RHP Lance Broadway (1st Round, Chicago White Sox), and current Toronto Blue Jay RHP Jeremy Accardo.
Herbst also spent time on the bench at Northern Illinois University an assistant coach in 2001. During his year at NIU, the Huskies posted their first winning season in 20 years.
Herbst also enjoyed great success as both player and coach at Lincoln Memorial University form 1998-2000, helping lead the Railsplitters to national prominence at the Division II level.
He is a native of Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. Herbst graduated from Lincoln Memorial in 2000 with a degree in Physical Education. He also holds an Associate of Arts Degree from North Iowa Area Community College.
