The Mets have turned Bobby Bonilla Day into an unofficial holiday.

For Mets fans, July 1 was not always a day of celebration.

During the Wilpon days, it was a reminder of the peculiar situation the franchise often operated in under the club’s previous owner, but since Steve Cohen took over in 2020, the day has turned into an unofficial holiday in Queens. .

July 1, known as Bobby Bonilla Day to Mets fans, has become a celebration in itself each year when the Mets paid the former major leaguer $1,193,248.20 for a contract he made with the ball club. as part of the agreement when they bought out his contract. 2000.

“It’s kind of like my birthday, isn’t it? It’s gotten so big,” Bonilla, now 61, told The Post over the phone. “I don’t think people know the exact date of my birthday, but they definitely know when this deferred comp comes out, so it’s great in that regard.”

For those unaware, Bonilla signed a five-year, $29 million deal with the Mets in 1991, the richest contract in team sports at the time.

Bonilla did not live up to the high expectations placed on him after signing and was eventually traded to the Orioles before ending up with the Marlins, where he won a World Series title in 1997 and then returned to the Mets for the 1999 season. . ,

The Mets worked out an agreement with Bonilla and his agent Dennis Gilbert to buy out his contract in January 2000 of that year, with the stipulation that the franchise would defer payment of $5.9 million with 8 percent interest and spread it out. From 2011-35.

At the time, the ownership, led by Fred Wilpon, was expecting a return on the investment it had made with Bernie Madoff, the profits of which they expected to use to pay for the buyout.

Instead, the team got caught up in the fallout of the Madoff Ponzi scheme and the original $5.9 million grew to $29.8 million, which breaks down into the annual $1.19 million payment Bonilla received.

At first, the day was a sad one for Mets fans because other fans were cheering their financial stupidity.

However, ever since the team’s current multi-billionaire owner has taken control of the franchise, it has taken on a new light.

And Bobby Bonilla Day has become a more celebrated affair around Queens – Cohen even suggested that the team host an annual celebration where he would hand Bonilla a big check to commemorate the day.

Bonilla has opted to celebrate the annual pay day in a slightly more low-key manner, at least for now.

The former Met said he has been to golf tournaments with his son over the years.

“This particular Monday I will actually be at home,” he said.

Mets fans hoping that Bobby Bonilla Day — with all the pomp and circumstance, as Cohen suggested in 2020 — will become a reality will have to be patient.

Bonilla confirmed that the Mets owner “has personally reached out” and conversations have taken place, but “nothing has happened yet.”

“It’s not something I’m thinking about at this particular time because I have a high school student who is entering his senior year in August,” said Bonilla, who is recognized by the Orioles on July 1 each year. Also received $500,000 in deferred payments from.

“I won’t think about anything until he’s active in college and then I’ll take it from there.”

While July 1 has become an unofficial baseball holiday, Gilbert sees the day as a learning tool for young athletes in terms of giving themselves a better financial future.

Gilbert, who now serves as commissioner of Perfect Game – a scouting service for youth baseball and softball – and has worked in the insurance industry, offered to defer salary before Bonilla signed with the Mets in 1991. Started talking about.

Gilbert told The Post that when the idea of ​​deferred payments was brought up to the Mets he had no objection to it “because they had the right to use about $1 million a year” for other players.

The money the Mets saved by not paying Bonilla immediately helped the organization pick up pitcher Mike Hampton’s contract in 2000, and the lefty helped them reach the World Series that year for the first time since 1986.

“A lot of guys who were coming out of the game and a lot of stars who were retiring and coming out of the game, a few years later they didn’t have any money,” Gilbert said of the deferred payment incentives. Idea. “It’s all about safety and working with young people is wonderful. …To help bring about change and organize the youth.”

He added: “This is not just what they are doing today. It’s like taking money out of today’s bank and putting it in tomorrow’s bank, and if you get interest on it, it’s even better.”

Deferred payments have become common in MLB contracts, most notably Shohei Ohtani deferring 97 percent of his $700 million Dodgers contract until it expires after 2033.

Ken Griffey Jr. was receiving $3,593,750 annually from the Reds in deferred payments beginning in 2009.

“If there’s an opportunity for (players) to invest some money, I highly recommend it,” Bonilla said. “Not everyone is going to make a lot of money, but I like to see, whether you’re a $100 million player or you’re a $1 million player, people are really thinking about investing money. I think it’s extremely important and I don’t think it gets enough attention.”

Bonilla said that players and fans on the street still come up to him to talk about his famous contract and he called talking about it “exciting” because he hopes it helps other players earn more than theirs. Will help in protecting money.

Gilbert and Bonilla still talk regularly, with Bonilla estimating that they talk twice a month — which certainly includes a phone call on July 1.

Sometimes those calls come when Bonilla meets with a fan wanting to talk about a deal with the Mets.

“It’s more like, ‘Dude, what’s the smart thing to do,’ they say that all the time,” Bonilla said. “I smile and then usually when that happens I call Dennis and pat him on the back. Dennis was the right guy for me.