BOBBY B0NILLA CELEBRATED

When Bobby Bonilla was released by the New York Mets in 2000, the first place Bobby Bonilla located was an out-of-town newspaper booth in Baltimore the next morning.

He remained a fan, but realized that the then-Shea Stadium Major League baseball team didn’t have much use for him anymore as it said goodbye to his lowly .160 batting average, only four home runs, and 18 RBI the previous season when a knee injury limited him to 119 at-bats.

Whatever, he did want to see how the Mets did once he landed in Baltimore, so he checked it out and cheered via their 6-3 win over the visiting Philadelphia rivals.

But he also had good things to think, when with two seasons left on his contract at $5.9 million, and the club agreed to defer his salary at 8 percent interest and make 25 equal payments at $1,193.248.20 each July 1st from 2011-35, a grand total of $29,831.205.

Through these years, fans have lampooned the decision every since as folly.

Have the Mets forgotten about the former player who is still on their payroll?

Well, not to new owner, Steven Cohen. He is embracing Bobby Bonilla Day, an annual remembrance of a famously unsuccessful contract.

On Thursday a promotion that allows a fan to book an Airbnd stay for four at Citi Field for $250.00 that includes use of the team gymnasium and showers. The promotion includes throwing out the ceremonial first pitch before the Mets play the visiting Atlanta Braves on July 28.

Any words from Bonilla regarding this haven’t been announced yet, but knowing Bonilla, he’d be only too happy to accept this and be back with the fans he was cheered by even in his worse days. He was popular and still gets paid, which is why he still has an interest in his former team.

And so a big cheer for this promotion.