Why Bobby Bonilla gets paid nearly $1.2 million by the New York Mets every July for a decision made 25 years ago | MLB News
Bobby Bonilla, one of the most talented and popular players in the history of MLB, has a pretty deep and interesting connection with today’s date, 1st July. Since 2011, the MLB legend has received a whopping $1,193,248.20 from his former team, the New York Mets, on 1st July. Interestingly, he would continue to receive this amount until 2035 when he would be well into his 70s.
Bobby Bonilla will receive approximately $1.2 million until he is 72 years old for a decision he made in 2000
The reason why Bobby Bonilla continues to receive $1,193,248.20 from the New York Mets even though he left the team and the league long back, goes back to the year 2000.Twenty five years ago, the New York Mets had signed a pretty interesting deal with the MLB legend, Bobby Bonilla. At that point in time, Bobby Bonilla did not receive a whopping $5.9 million from the New York Mets but agreed for the team to make him an annual payment for 25 years.In 2000, this amount was decided to be approximately a whopping $1.2 million, which Bobby Bonilla would be receiving for 25 years from 1st July 2011.But that is not all; keeping inflation in mind, an interest rate of 8% was negotiated between the New York Mets and Bobby Bonilla.Now, even though it has been decades since Bobby Bonilla took the stadium, he continues to receive $1,193,248.20 every year from the New York Mets since 2011 and will continue to receive until 2035 when he is expected to turn 72 years old.1st July has now turned into a memorable day for the New York Mets’ fans and the management. Under the leadership and management of Steve Cohen, the New York Mets celebrate this day as the “Bobby Bonilla Day”.While this arrangement between Bobby Bonilla and the New York Mets is a bit interesting and rare, it is not the only such arrangement in the league.According to ESPN, other MLB legends like Bret Saberhagen, Manny Ramírez, Max Scherzer continue to be in such arrangements with their teams, including the Boston Red Sox, the New York Mets and more.Also Read: MLB fan sparks outrage after being removed from stadium for interfering with the match in Diamondbacks vs. Giants game
