What is Bobby Bonilla Day? Contract earned itself an MLB holiday
"It's bigger than my birthday," Bonilla told USA TODAY Sports. "When that day comes, I get texts all day long, and couple of days after and maybe a day or two before. Everybody just seems to love that day and have fun with it. It's become a pretty big thing."
Contract deferrals weren't new in baseball at the time and have been deployed heavily in the 25 years since Bonilla left the Mets, but the fact that he will be getting seven-figure checks until he's 72 years old is what most captivates the baseball world.
"There'll be plenty of other deferred contracts," Bonilla's former agent Dennis Gilbert told USA TODAY Sports in 2023, "but for a guy to be paid that long into his life, into his 70s, I don't think we'll ever see that again.
"That's why Bobby Bonilla Day should be celebrated."
Bobby Bonilla Day contract
Bonilla signed a four-year, $23.3 million contract with the Marlins prior to the 1997 season and helped the team win its first World Series that year, but was traded to the Dodgers in 1998 as part of the club's infamous fire sale.
Before the 1999 season, the Dodgers traded Bonilla to the Mets, who were looking for a new right fielder at the time - with New York assuming the remaining two years and $11.65 million on Bonilla's contract.
Then 36 years old, Bonilla played just 60 regular season games for the Mets in 1999, batting .160. He was constantly booed by fans and clashed with manager Bobby Valentine over his playing time and was relegated to the bench for the team's postseason run.
The Mets released Bonilla after the 1999 season but still owed him $5.9 million for 2000. The team worked with Bonilla's agent (Gilbert) to defer the $5.9 million - with 8% interest - to annual payments of $1,193,248.20 on July 1 from 2011 to 2035.
"It's funny how the Bobby Bonilla thing has blown up," agent Nez Balelo told USA TODAY Sports in 2023, months before negotiating Shohei Ohtani's historic $700 million deal with $680 million deferred. "I just think it's because someone has been out of the game for so long, making that much money every year, it fascinates people."
When does Bobby Bonilla Day end?
The Mets' final "Bobby Bonilla Day" payment is set for 2035, when the six-time All-Star will be 72 years old.
Though Bobby Bonilla Day remains something of a punchline and opportunity to laugh at the Mets, the team has embraced the situation since Steve Cohen bought the team. New York's new owner immediately joked about holding a Bobby Bonilla Day celebration at Citi Field, complete with an oversized check.
Bobby Bonilla stats
Bonilla played 2,113 career games in 16 seasons from 1986 to 2001, finishing with 287 home runs, a .279 average and an .829 OPS.
Bonilla's best years came with the Pirates from 1987-1991, averaging 23 home runs and 97 RBIs per season.
He was an All-Star four years in a row, winning three Silver Slugger awards, and was the 1990 NL MVP runner-up and finished third in MVP voting in 1991, his final year in Pittsburgh. He was also named an All-Star in 1993 and 1995 during his first tenure with the Mets.
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What is Bobby Bonilla Day? Contract earned itself an MLB holiday
Looking to dump Bonilla after the 1999 season, the Mets opted to defer his payment - with 8% interest - giving him $1,193,248.20 annually on July 1 from 2011-2035 - adding up to nearly $30 million. "It's bigger than my birthday," Bonilla told USA TODAY Sports. "When that day comes, I get texts all day long, and couple of days after and maybe a day or two before. Everybody just seems to love that day and have fun with it. It's become a pretty big thing." Contract deferrals weren't new in baseball at the time and have been deployed heavily in the 25 years since Bonilla left the Mets, but the fact that he will be getting seven-figure checks until he's 72 years old is what most captivates the baseball world. "There'll be plenty of other deferred contracts," Bonilla's former agent Dennis Gilbert told USA TODAY Sports in 2023, "but for a guy to be paid that long into his life, into his 70s, I don't think we'll ever see that again. "That's why Bobby Bonilla Day should be celebrated." Bobby Bonilla Day contract Bonilla signed a four-year, $23.3 million contract with the Marlins prior to the 1997 season and helped the team win its first World Series that year, but was traded to the Dodgers in 1998 as part of the club's infamous fire sale. Before the 1999 season, the Dodgers traded Bonilla to the Mets, who were looking for a new right fielder at the time - with New York assuming the remaining two years and $11.65 million on Bonilla's contract. Then 36 years old, Bonilla played just 60 regular season games for the Mets in 1999, batting .160. He was constantly booed by fans and clashed with manager Bobby Valentine over his playing time and was relegated to the bench for the team's postseason run. The Mets released Bonilla after the 1999 season but still owed him $5.9 million for 2000. The team worked with Bonilla's agent (Gilbert) to defer the $5.9 million - with 8% interest - to annual payments of $1,193,248.20 on July 1 from 2011 to 2035. "It's funny how the Bobby Bonilla thing has blown up," agent Nez Balelo told USA TODAY Sports in 2023, months before negotiating Shohei Ohtani's historic $700 million deal with $680 million deferred. "I just think it's because someone has been out of the game for so long, making that much money every year, it fascinates people." When does Bobby Bonilla Day end? The Mets' final "Bobby Bonilla Day" payment is set for 2035, when the six-time All-Star will be 72 years old. Though Bobby Bonilla Day remains something of a punchline and opportunity to laugh at the Mets, the team has embraced the situation since Steve Cohen bought the team. New York's new owner immediately joked about holding a Bobby Bonilla Day celebration at Citi Field, complete with an oversized check. Bobby Bonilla stats Bonilla played 2,113 career games in 16 seasons from 1986 to 2001, finishing with 287 home runs, a .279 average and an .829 OPS. Bonilla's best years came with the Pirates from 1987-1991, averaging 23 home runs and 97 RBIs per season. He was an All-Star four years in a row, winning three Silver Slugger awards, and was the 1990 NL MVP runner-up and finished third in MVP voting in 1991, his final year in Pittsburgh. He was also named an All-Star in 1993 and 1995 during his first tenure with the Mets.
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The sun rises on another July 1st, marking yet another 'holiday' for New York Mets fans. Happy Bobby Bonilla Day. Another payment in arguably the most infamous deferred payment setup in sports history gets distributed today as a player who hasn't laced up his cleats since 2001 collects a check for $1,193,248.20. It's also officially the 10-years-remaining mark on this megadeal - with Bonilla set to continue to collect payments through 2035. Bonilla signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates in the early 1980s and by 1986, he made his MLB debut with the Chicago White Sox. Over the course of his career, he'd star for teams like the Pittsburgh Pirates, the New York Mets, and the Baltimore Orioles. He also won the 1997 World Series with the Florida Marlins. He was also a six-time All-Star and had won the Silver Slugger Award three times in his career. But by 1999, he was on the decline in the middle of his second stint with the Mets and the team decided to release him. The only issue was they owed him $5.9million to pay out the rest of his contract. But Bonilla's agent went to the Mets with an offer: they would agree to have the payment deferred for a decade and with interest, Bonilla would get paid over $1.19m per year every July 1 from 2011 to 2035. While that meant his payout would balloon from $5.9m to $29.8m, the Mets agreed to the deal. That's partially because Mets owner Fred Wilpon was heavily invested with Bernie Madoff in his infamous Ponzi scheme at the time. Wilpon believed that the 10 percent returns he was making on his investments with Madoff would outweigh the eight percent interest he'd have to pay to Bonilla on the $5.9m, so he accepted the deal. So each year, fans of baseball celebrate the payout as some sort of informal national holiday - with social media always going nuts over the deal. But it's important to note that Bonilla isn't the only player getting deferred money. Most notably, Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani is only getting paid $2million per year over the length of his 10-year contract before getting paid $68million per year from 2034 to 2043. Andrew Brandt, a former NFL executive and a professor at Villanova University, tweeted in 2024, 'Always amused at the reaction to Bobby Bonilla's deferred payments. I don't know about his interest rates, but know this: Every team, in every sport, would rather defer than pay in present. Money now better than money later. I fought with agents all the time in trying to defer. The funny thing is, this isn't even the only deferred contract Bonilla is on the receiving end of. He also gets paid another $500,000 from the Baltimore Orioles - having collected payment from them each year since 2004 and running until 2029.
