New York Mets: Bobby Bonilla remains an American hero

July 1 has become a national holiday for MLB fans and it is all thanks to a wise business decision made by Bobby Bonilla. For those unaware, he gets a check for $1.1 million every year from the New York Mets until 2035.

Bonilla deferred money during his career and set himself up with quite the retirement package. The Mets saved money at the time, and now Steve Cohen is stuck with the bill. But he doesn’t seem to care too much.

Bobby Bonilla represents a truly fun MLB story

Bonilla was a six-time All-Star during his MLB career, but was never considered a superstar. That is why it remains so funny that he basically gets his own day of recognition among MLB fans in the present.

His recurring payment also represents a fun, carefree story. The Mets are now leaning into the fun with Cohen as the new owner and having Bonilla show up every year would be something fun to do as well.

Bonilla’s story is one current MLB players may want to bring up when settling their own contracts. Maybe a team wants to move on without taking a huge financial hit. Well, the team can defer the money and set up a player with sure payments well into retirement.

And Bonilla is not the only player following this plan. Ken Griffey Jr. has been getting nearly $3.6 million per year from the Cincinnati Reds since 2010 and will keep getting that annual check through the 2024 season.

It is easy to take the side of players over owners and hard to feel anything but happy for players who earned themselves a nice retirement package. As for Bonilla, he has taken it to a whole new level as part of an unofficial holiday.