3 hyped NY Mets trades or signings that failed to change the franchise for the better

2) Bobby Bonilla

Just the mere mention of Bobby Bonilla’s name sends Mets fans into a frenzy. His $1 million dollar annual deferred payment has become a national holiday. So let’s get this out of the way first – MANY players have contracts that include deferred annual payments. Willie Mays…WILLIE MAYS…was very quietly given an annual payment for YEARS by the Mets as a part of the deal that brought him to the club from the San Francisco Giants. Yet there’s no mocking holiday for him, rather, his number is now enshrined in the Citifield outfield.

Bonilla was another puzzling move. Make no mistake, Bonilla was a talented ballplayer. He was versatile as he could play the corner outfield positions and the corner infield positions. Not great, mind you, but passable. And he was a switch-hitter with power from both sides of the plate. So there was a lot to be attracted to, especially since he was a local product.

And he came in at a time when the Mets were retooling. The dominant team of the late 80’s was systematically disbanded and, rather than employing the tactics Cashen used to build up, his replacement somehow was given carte blanche to spend money. And the spending spree began with Bonilla.

While Bonilla teamed with Barry Bonds to make a formidable tandem in Pittsburgh and enjoyed a great supporting cast, Bonilla was not afforded that same luxury with the Mets. He was not expected to be the savior with the Pirates. In fact, as exuberant a personality as he was, he always took a back seat to the caustic and standoffish Bonds. In New York, Bonilla would be front and center.

While Bonilla would perform admirably for a time, he wasn’t the superstar that it appeared the Mets were getting, and paying for. The fans let him know that. And the brash Bonilla was not able to elevate his performance and soon he was run out of town for a mere bag of balls. Okay, it was for prospects. But the Mets may have done better with the bag of balls.

If management hadn’t had enough, or hadn’t learned their lesson, they brought Bonilla back for an encore and he embarrassed himself and the management embarrassment THEMSELVES with going to the well one too many times.