Every July 1st, the New York Mets cut Bobby Bonilla a check for $1.19 million. They’ve done so for almost two decades. They aren’t the only ones doing it either.
Deferred contracts are all too common in Major League Baseball now. The Washington Nationals are going to pay Max Scherzer for many years after he hangs up his cleats. The Mets themselves are still paying Brett Saberhagen $250K each year. Yet for some reason, it’s Bonilla who has become the poster child for this strategy of paying players later on in life.