Together Again, in Different Roles

When Baysox RHP Tyler Herb arrived for college at Coastal Carolina as a freshman, he got some guidance from Josh Conway, an older teammate.
"He kind of took me under his wing and showed me the ropes and how to work hard," said Herb, a pitcher in his first year in the Orioles system. "I can thank him for my work ethic."
That is not hard to do, as Conway is usually just a few feet away in the Baysox clubhouse or on the bus during road trips.
Conway is in his first season as a bench coach while Herb was in the starting rotation early in the season for the Baysox.
"We will joke around here and there," Herb said. "It is understood it is a professional relationship (now). He was kind of like an older brother to me when I was down at Coastal."
"He was a tall, thin, athletic guy," Conway said of Herb coming to Coastal Carolina. "He had a lot of ability and he still does. He uses his athleticism well. He has three really good pitches and he is a great guy in the clubhouse. He is going to work really hard to get to the top. It will be a good, fun season and hopefully I can help him."
The former college pitchers share more than a career at Coastal Carolina, which was a conference power when they played there and later advanced to the College World Series in 2016.
Herb is a native of Harrisburg, Pa., while Conway was born in Waynesboro, Pa. and grew up in Smithsburg, Maryland.
Conway, who pitched in 42 games in college from 2010-12, was picked in the fourth round by the Chicago Cubs. He played three years in the minors with the Cubs before becoming an assistant pitching coach at Coastal Carolina in 2017 while working on his degree.
"I think as a player you are a student of the game," said Conway, standing outside the Baysox clubhouse. "I just enjoyed being around the game and learning once things didn't work out as player. I was fortunate to get a role at Coastal when I went back to finish up. The staff let me on as a student assistant and I was able to track the new stuff and the changes that is coming into the game."
"Being from Maryland, it is awesome to be one and a half hours from home. It is the first time my wife and I are together in pro ball. Hopefully I can continue to grow as a coach and learn from the older guys," Conway added.
Herb was drafted out of Coastal Carolina in the 29^th round in 2014 by Seattle. He was in the Mariners' minor league system until July 3, 2017, when he was traded to the San Francisco Giants for cash.
The Pennsylvania native spent the rest of the season at Double-A Richmond, where he was 2-3 with a 2.76 ERA in 10 starts. Last year, Herb advanced to Triple-A for the first time, and he was 2-8 with a 5.35 in 13 starts in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
Then, in late March of this year, he was traded by the Giants to the Orioles for minor league outfielder Mike Yastrzemski, who played several years for the Baysox through 2018.
Was Herb surprised?
"A little bit, especially being so late in the spring," he said.
Now, he is among many minor leaguers under a new front office. Herb said making it to Baltimore - just a couple hours south of the Harrisburg area - would be a dream come true.
This year, the Orioles have a new general manager in Mike Elias and a new manager in Brandon Hyde, while Buck Britton is a first-year manager with the Baysox.
"I went through two regime changes, one with Seattle and one with San Francisco," Herb said. "It is not really an advantage for me coming in. You have a fresh pair of eyes looking at you (and) you get a new opportunity. Everyone has the opportunity to make a first impression for those at the top."
Editor's note: Between the time of this interview and the time of publishing, Herb was promoted to Triple-A Norfolk.
David Driver is a free-lance writer from Cheverly who has covered the Baysox since their inception in the 1990s. He has contributed to Baseball America, milb.com, Baseball Digest and Orioles Magazine. He can be reached at davidsdriver.com and @DaytonVaDriver.