The Mets Police

The Mets, with a flair for the dramatic and an unprecedented expenditure of cash, signed free agent Bobby Bonilla last night to a huge contract that made him the highest-paid player in team sports. The deal is a guaranteed package for five years and is worth $29 million. The Mets will pay Bonilla $27.5 million in base salary, as well as $1.5 million in a promotional arrangement. So the player who helped lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to consecutive National League East titles in 1990 and 1991 will reap an annual wage of $5.8 million.

But wait, it gets better...let me know if any of the below sounds familiar

In recent seasons, too many Mets have acted as if they were serving a jail sentence in Shea Stadium instead of playing baseball there for millions of dollars and millions of spectators.

All those fans booing if they struck out or threw a home-run pitch. All those notebooks, microphones and cameras just asking questions that fans would ask if they had the opportunity. All those headlines. All those pressures that New York seems to generate, more so than most major league cities.....

....Now the Mets must retool their roster, with an emphasis on stabilizing the pitching rotation.

The latter from this Times article on Dec 4th

In 1992 Bonilla hit .249 as the Mets went 72 and 90.

Bonilla hit 34 home runs in 1993 and the Mets went....wait for it....59 and 103.