Baseball was in Bob Fontaine Jr.’s blood long before he began scouting the players who would become stars. His father, Robert Fontaine, was a pitcher for the Montreal Royals and a minor league teammate of Jackie Robinson, and Fontaine Jr.
Longtime baseball scout and former executive Bob Fontaine Jr. has passed away at the age of 73, prompting tributes from the Los Angeles Angels and across Major League Baseball. Fontaine spent nearly five decades in professional baseball, including 13 seasons directing the Angels' scouting department. During his tenure with the franchise, he helped identify key homegrown talent including Garret Anderson, Tim Salmon, Darin Erstad, Jim Edmonds, Jim Abbott, and Francisco Rodríguez, which formed the core of the Angels' 2002 World Series championship team.
Throughout a 48-year career across six organizations, Fontaine also contributed to the signings of future Hall of Famers Tony Gwynn and Ozzie Smith with the San Diego Padres, as well as Randy Johnson with the Montreal Expos. He later held key roles with the Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners, and Toronto Blue Jays, earning widespread respect across the sport for his reliance on keen observation, instinct, and mentorship of future executives.
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