Bruce Sutter

Sutter signed a six year contract for $9.1 million with the Braves before the 1985 season. Each year, his “salary” of $750,000 was actually only an interest payment of roughly 8% on the money, which means he still got paid in 1989 and 1990 despite retiring. Then, for 30 years, he gets $1.12 million every year. In 2022, when Sutter is 69 years old, the Braves owe him a balloon payment of that $9.1 million.

All in all, it’s over $47 million owed to Sutter. That’s a lot of money for a guy who only converted 40 saves on a team that averaged 96 losses per season. The Braves definitely didn’t get the return on investment they hoped for.