{{short description|French baseball player|bot=PearBOT 5}} {{Infobox MLB player | image = File:Joris_Bert2.png | caption= Joris Bert - Crédit : FFBS | name=Joris Bert | team=Rouen Baseball 76 | position=Center Field<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=bert--001jor|title=Joris Bert Minor Leagues Statistics|access-date=22 September 2017}}</ref> | bats=Left | throws=Left | birth_date={{Birth date and age|df=y|1987|5|16}} | birth_place=[[Louviers]], [[France]] }} '''Joris Bert''' (born 16 May 1987),{{cn|date=January 2023}} is a [[French people|French]] [[baseball player]] for {{interlanguage link|Rouen Baseball 76|fr}} of [[Division Élite]]. He bats left and throws left.{{cn|date=January 2023}} He is nicknamed "Frenchie" by his teammates.<ref name="nytimes1">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/29/sports/baseball/29dodgers.html|title=Dodgers' Bert Is Crown Jewel of the European Academy|first=Alan|last=Schwarz|date=2008-03-29|work=[[New York Times]]}}</ref>
==Biography== He started playing baseball as a child when he arrived late to a soccer practice one day. He noticed some children playing baseball in the next field, and went to join them; he enjoyed the game and has been interested in the sport ever since then.<ref name="nytimes1"/>
Educated in [[Louviers]], and then at the ''[[Institut national du sport et de l'éducation physique]] (INSEP)'', Joris played on the field as both a pitcher and an outfielder. Arriving in Rouen after having improved his game with the {{interlanguage link|Woodchucks de Bois-Guillaume|fr}} of the [[Division Élite]], he won the 2006 French baseball championship while playing for the {{interlanguage link|Rouen Baseball 76|fr}}. In July 2006, he was the second runner up for the ''Europe Espoir'' prize while playing with the French national team.
A quick runner with a strong arm, he moved to Texas in January 2007 to play ball for [[Frank Phillips College]] of the [[NJCAA]]. He led his team with in RBIs and stolen bases (42 in 49 games). Major League Baseball recruiters became interested in him during the [[2007 MLB draft]], and on 8 June 2007, he became the first French baseball player in history to be drafted by a Major League Baseball franchise. He was selected during the 19th round (596th overall) of the 2007 player draft by the [[Los Angeles Dodgers]].
From 12 to 16 June 2007, the played in the European Baseball Cup in Saint Marin with Rouen, winning the second place [[European Baseball Championship|European Championship]].
His minor-league debut was on 27 July 2007 with the [[Gulf Coast League]]. During this first game as a [[Gulf Coast League Dodgers|GCL Dodger]], he scored one run against the [[Gulf Coast League Marlins|GCL Marlins]].<ref>{{cite news|author=Ken Gurnick |url=http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070727&content_id=2113261&vkey=news_la&fext=.jsp&c_id=la |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080116030652/http://losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070727&content_id=2113261&vkey=news_la&fext=.jsp&c_id=la |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 16, 2008 |title=Notes: Lowe, Wolf both hurting |publisher=Losangeles.dodgers.mlb.com |access-date=2010-08-27}}</ref>
As a member of the [[France national baseball team|French national baseball team]], he was selected to play in the Beijing tournament from 15 to 24 August 2007; he also played in the European Championship from 5 to 16 September 2007.<ref>[http://www.ffbsc.fr/imgs/partenaires/EquipesFrance2007_Baseballsenior.pdf ] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016001829/http://www.ffbsc.fr/imgs/partenaires/EquipesFrance2007_Baseballsenior.pdf|date=October 16, 2007}}</ref>
He was recruited with a starting bonus of 25,000 euros, and now makes a monthly salary of 800 euros.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.humanite.fr/2007-06-26_Sports_Joris-Bert-a-l-assaut-de-l-Amerique |title=Joris Bert à l'assaut de l'Amérique | Humanite |publisher=Humanite.fr |date=2007-06-26 |access-date=2010-08-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080726023647/http://www.humanite.fr/2007-06-26_Sports_Joris-Bert-a-l-assaut-de-l-Amerique |archive-date=July 26, 2008 }}</ref>
Joris had visa problems upon arrival in the US, but was able to play in the Gulf Coast League. He quickly adapted to the new culture; he speaks fluent Spanish, and integrated well with his international teammates. A 2008 ''[[New York Times]]'' article said that the Dodgers expect action from him, and that he was rapidly learning the finer points of hitting, though his parents had not come to see him play in the US; "They don't understand," he said.<ref name="nytimes1"/>
Bert was released during the 2009 season, after which he returned to Rouen. He made 26 appearances in 2024, slashing .275/.388/.426 while stealing 10 bases.<ref>{{cite web |title=Joris Bert |url=https://ffbs.wbsc.org/en/events/2024-championnat-de-france-division-1-baseball/teams/29334/players/413032 |website=myWBSC |publisher=World Baseball and Softball Federation |access-date=January 27, 2025}}</ref>
==Sources== ''This article draws heavily on the [[:fr:Joris Bert]] article in the French-language Wikipedia, which was accessed in the version of September 5, 2008.''
''Sources quoted here are also quoted in the French Wikipedia article of the same name.''
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{baseballstats|brm=bert--001jor}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bert, Joris}} [[Category:1987 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Gulf Coast Dodgers players]] [[Category:French baseball players]] [[Category:People from Louviers]] [[Category:French expatriate sportspeople in the United States]] [[Category:Baseball pitchers]] [[Category:Sportspeople from Eure]] [[Category:2007 European Baseball Championship players]]