After Cam Newton signed a contract with the Patriots that pays him a base salary of the veteran minimum, some pointed out that veteran journeyman Chase Daniel will make more this year than Newton and Saints quarterback Jameis Winston combined. There’s another intriguing sports-world comparison that arises today, July 1, commonly known as Bobby Bonilla Day.
Every July 1 since 2011 and until 2035, Bonilla will receive $1.19 million from the New York Mets. As noted by Josh Rowntree of 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh, and as passed along by long-suffering Mets/Jets/Knicks/Islanders fan and PFT Live coordinating producer Matt Casey, that’s more than Newton’s base salary of $1.05 million and Winston’s $950,000 base salary.
Chris Bumbaca of USA Today explains the decision to defer payments to Bonilla for so many years. The annual payments, based on eight-percent interest, flowed from the fact that the Mets planned to take the principal owed to Bonilla and invest it in a fund that was generating an even higher annual return. The only problem with that approach? The fund was operated by Bernie Madoff.
Bonilla is now 57. The annual $1.19 million payment will continue until he’s 72.