Final sale price: $180,000 ? #OnlyAtGoldin
All-time record for any Bobby Bonilla item ? pic.twitter.com/AFjtM8rNQ5
— Goldin (@GoldinCo) August 7, 2022
What a statement. A record-setting day for the vaunted Bobby Bonilla memorabilia market. I can only imagine the bidding war that would break out if someone managed to locate the card table Bonilla and Rickey Henderson used in the Mets’ clubhouse during Game 6 of the 1999 NLCS. Talk about a great addition to any man cave.
Anyway, if you’re reading this, you know the deal. The Amazins owe Bonilla roughly $1.2 million every July 1 until 2035 as part of a salary deferment agreement. And now someone has plunked down $180,000 for the actual paperwork in a Goldin auction (the winning bid was $150,000 plus the buyer’s premium).
The package also includes 30-minute zoom calls with Bonilla and the agent who negotiated the deal, a signed baseball, a game-used bat and the 1/1 NFT of the deal. And wait, there’s more!
From Goldin:
As an added bonus, included with this lot is a special “Bobby Bonilla Day” experience, which is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to spend the day with the one and only Bobby Bonilla. The winner will also go to breakfast with him, head to Citi Field for a New York Mets game, where you will watch batting practice on the field with Bobby, and enjoy the game with him, and cap off your day with dinner. This will all take place at a future date in 2023.
It’s been cool to see the Mets lean into Bobby Bonilla Day festivities ever since Steve Cohen bought the team. There’s no reason to not have fun with it. It’s really not that big of a deal. Money now is worth more than money later. That’s economics 101. That the Mets made the move because they were riding high on the wave of Bernie Madoff-driven returns does muck things up. But still. Hopefully they eventually get Bonilla and a big check out to Citi Field for a victory lap. And whoever bought this thing gets to sit shotgun.
James Kratch can be reached at james.kratch@xlmedia.com
