Bobby Bonilla has not recorded an MLB at-bat in 14 years and he hasn’t recorded an at-bat with the Mets in 16 years, yet his 2015 salary would be the eighth-highest on New York’s 2015 payroll. It is not unusual for departed and/or retired players to still be receiving compensation from previous teams but it’s extremely unusual for their salary to ride for three decades after their last appearance with the team and have that salary far exceed most of those on the 25-man roster.
Bonilla played for the Mets from 1992-1995 before bouncing around with the Orioles, Marlins and Dodgers from 1996-1998. He would return to Shea Stadium in 1999 but only hit .237 with seven homers and 30 RBI in 60 games. The team wanted to rid themselves of his contract so badly that they deferred his $5.9 million buyout until the year 2011. However, instead of simply writing Bonilla a check for that amount in 2011, they agreed to spread it out over 25 years, including interest. The final total after eight percent interest? $29,831,205.
As a result, he began receiving a $1.19 million check on July 1, 2011, has received one every year since and will continue to receive one until 2035. The $1.19 million tag would place him above a whopping 17 players on their current 25-man roster, including the likes of Jeurys Familia, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Matt Harvey.
We can put our investor caps on and argue about whether or not Bonilla could’ve turned that initial $5.9 million into more than $29.8 million by 2035 (yes, we hope so) but it doesn’t discount the fact that $29.8 million is still a heap of money and it’s hilarious that the Mets are paying him more than their incredible young talent.
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