Wynton Bernard

Wynton Allen Bernard (born September 24, 1990) is an American professional baseball outfielder in the Chicago White Sox organization.

He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies.

Bernard attended Rancho Bernardo High School in Poway, California.

He received an athletic scholarship to attend Niagara University and play college baseball for the Niagara Purple Eagles.

As a freshman, Bernard had a .293 batting average and led the team in stolen bases.

He transferred to Riverside Community College after the season because his father had a stroke and he wanted to be closer to his family.

Bernard's father died after his sophomore year, and he transferred back to Niagara for his junior year.

For Niagara, Bernard compiled a .279 average and 72 stolen bases in 140 games from 2009 to 2012.

The San Diego Padres selected Bernard in the 35th round, with the 1,065th overall selection, of the 2012 Major League Baseball draft.

He made his professional debut with the rookie–level Arizona League Padres, hitting .232 across 23 games.

In 2013, Bernard split the season between the AZL Padres, Low–A Eugene Emeralds, Single–A Fort Wayne TinCaps, and High–A Lake Elsinore Storm.

In 51 total games, he accumulated a .251/.325/.331 batting line with 1 home run, 16 RBI, and 10 stolen bases.

On January 23, 2014, Bernard was released by the Padres organization.

On March 3, 2014, Bernard signed a minor league contract with the Detroit Tigers organization.

He played for the Low-A West Michigan Whitecaps in 2014, and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Midwest League after hitting .324 with 6 home runs, 47 RBI, and 45 stolen bases across 131 contests.

He additionally broke the teams single season hit record with 164.

On October 31, 2014, the Tigers added Bernard to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

Bernard played for the Double-A Erie SeaWolves in 2015.

In 135 games, he batted .302/.352/.408 with 4 home runs, 36 RBI, and 43 stolen bases.

Bernard was optioned to the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens to begin the season.

On June 18, 2016, Bernard was designated for assignment by the Tigers following the promotion of Casey McGehee.

He cleared waivers and was sent outright to Double–A on June 24.

In 104 total games for Erie and Toledo, he batted .279/.345/.396 with a career–high 7 home runs, 33 RBI, and 23 stolen bases.

He became a free agent after the season on November 7.

On November 18, 2016, Bernard signed a minor league contract with the San Francisco Giants organization.

In 82 games for the Triple–A Sacramento River Cats, he hit .254/.303/.347 with 2 home runs, 14 RBI, and 13 stolen bases.

Bernard elected free agency following the season on November 6, 2017.

On January 29, 2018, Bernard signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs organization.

He split the season between the Double–A Tennessee Smokies and Triple–A Iowa Cubs, playing 98 total games and hitting .242/.293/.349 with 3 home runs, 22 RBI, and 25 stolen bases.

Bernard elected free agency following the season on November 3.

On November 22, 2018, Bernard re–signed with the Cubs on a minor league contract.

In 52 games for split between Tennessee and Iowa in 2019, he hit .278/.359/.444 with 2 home runs, 15 RBI, and 8 stolen bases.

Bernard was released by the Cubs organization on July 11, 2019.

On July 15, 2019, Bernard signed with the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.

In 61 games, Bernard slashed .314/.353/.461 with 6 home runs, 36 RBI, and 32 stolen bases.

On March 4, 2020, Bernard re–signed with the Skeeters for the 2020 season.

After the 2020 Atlantic League season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bernard joined the Skeeters in the Constellation Energy League.

In 23 games, he hit .270/.325/.378 with 2 home runs, 9 RBI, and 6 stolen bases.

On January 19, 2021, Bernard signed a minor league contract with the Colorado Rockies organization.

He spent the season with the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, playing in 100 games and batting .254/.319/.395 with 7 home runs, 30 RBI, and 23 stolen bases.