3 Mets contracts we were happy to see end, 2 still on the books we want to finish

The New York Mets have had a history of handing out bad free agent contracts, which contributed to a narrative of decades of dysfunction in the organization, specifically tied in to the Wilpons' meddling in baseball operations for years.

Every generation of Mets fans lived through some bad contracts, but there are five contracts that come to mind as those in which fans became restless and couldn't wait to see the last of those bad contracts come off the books.

1) Bad NY Mets contract: George Foster was the team's first big free agent addition, but he flamed out early

The Mets entered the 1982 season coming off it's fifth straight losing season following the disastrous trade that shipped Tom Seaver out of Flushing in 1977 and they were in desparate need of an established star player. The team seeked to acquire 33-year old outfielder George Foster in a trade with the Cincinnati Reds. Foster was the left fielder for the Reds during their glory years in the 1970s with the Big Red Machine. He was named National League MVP in 1977, and was named to five All-Star teams from 1976 to 1981.

However, Foster wouldn't agree to go to the Mets unless he received a five-year contract. And that's exactly what the Mets did, sending Greg Harris, Jim Kern, and Alex Trevino to the Reds in exchange for Foster's services in February 1982, in which Foster would receive $10 million over the five years.

But Foster seldom lived up to the lofty expectations in Flushing, both on and off the field. He batted just .252 with 99 home runs and never made the All-Star team as a Met and didn't fit in to the culture they were trying to establish. He never really got along with skipper Davey Johnson, and accused the team of racism when he was released in August 1986. But that accusation fell flat as the Mets replaced him as an everyday player with a rising Black star and future MVP in Kevin Mitchell, who played a role that fall for the Mets in winning the World Series.

At the time of the sign and trade in 1982, Foster's contract was the second largest in baseball history (behind Dave Winfield's $23 million deal he signed with the Yankees prior to the 1981 season. Although Foster's OPS+ as a Met was 103, it never felt enough to justify the money the team gave him.

At the time of his release in 1986, Foster had the highest salary in the league at $2.8 million, and the fans couldn't wait to allocate those funds elsewhere for 1987 and later.

2) Bad NY Mets contract: Vince Coleman's all-world speed netted him a big deal, then he ran himself into trouble

Darryl Strawberry signed a monster contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers after the 1990 season, leaving the Mets with questions about their outfield. They responded by signing speedy free agent outfielder Vince Coleman to a 4-year, $11.95 million contract starting in 1991. Coleman led the National League in stolen bases in each of his first six seasons in the majors with the St. Louis Cardinals, including 110 in his Rookie of the Year season in 1985.

The Mets were seeking a true leadoff hitter for a few years and believed Coleman was the answer. But trouble brewed before he even played a regular season game with the Mets. He was named in a sexual assault complaint in March 1991 in Florida alongside two other Mets. In-game, he didn't listen to coaches' advice on running the bases and proved hard to get along with.

Furthermore, Coleman got into fights with some coaches, including one in 1992 with manager Jeff Torborg in which the team suspended him for the rest of the season. The following year, he then injured Dwight Gooden's arm by swinging a golf club in the clubhouse and threw a firecracker outside Dodger Stadium that injured three children. All told, he was the centerpiece of the Mets' dysfunction of the early 1990s and was cut following the 1993 season.

On the field, Coleman played in just 235 games during the contract for the Mets, and was more unavailable than available, and he is still one of the worst villains in franchise history.

3) Bad NY Mets contract: Bobby Bonilla's deferments in his contract made the team a punchline

Bobby Bonilla returned to the Mets in 1999 for a secound stint in orange and blue as part of the Florida Marlins firesale following their 1997 World Series win. But he grossly underperformed that season and the Mets released him before the 2000 season, and the Mets didn't want to pay him. It didn't help that he was found playing cards with Rickey Henderson during Game 6 of the 1999 NLCS against the Braves when facing elimination after both were removed from the game.

So the Mets decided to defer the $5.9 million salary he was owed in 2000 into annual payments with an 8 percent interest such that he would be paid $1.19 million annually (or nearly $30 million overall) for 25 years. Because the Wilpons were banking on Bernie Madoff's firm to return large profits to their ownership, they decided to delay the start of those payments from 2000 to 2011.

However, In 2008, it was revealed that Madoff ran a Ponzi scheme and duped the Mets, setting off a firestorm in the organization and it crippled the Wilpons financially, and the Mets couldn't spend money on free agents the way they used to, forcing them into a rebuild and hiring Sandy Alderson to lead that rebuild.

The Mets will pay Bonilla annually on July 1 every year until 2035, and Mets fans will be subject to national media jokes on that day until then.

5) Bad NY Mets contract: Robinson Cano was the last example of the Wilpons overpaying a veteran past his prime

In December 2018, Brodie Van Wagenen made the defining move of his tumultuous two-year reign as general manager less than six weeks after he was hired to the position. He acquired Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz in a big trade with the Seattle Mariners in exchange for a package that featured prized prospect Jarred Kelenic.

Cano was 36 years old and had 5 years and $120 million left from the 10 year deal he signed with Seattle before 2014 and his power numbers were already on the decline when he was traded to the Mets, but the Mets needed depth in their lineup and the Mets believed Cano would add just that.

But Cano struggled with performance and injuries in 2019, hitting just 13 home runs and batted .256.

After a bounceback 2020 season, Cano was then suspended for the 2021 season for his second failed drug test, and was eventually released in 2022 due to poor performance on the field. The Mets owe Cano over $24 million in 2023 (with Seattle paying $3.75 million of it) and the Mets will see that money freed up for 2024. As for future contracts from other teams, Cano's time in Major League Baseball is likely in the rearview mirror.