It would be an understatement to say Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale has a lot riding on this World Series. Ten million, in fact, with wagers spread across various sportsbooks including Caesars, BetMGM, Wynn, Unibet, Betfred and Barstool Sports. The 71-year-old proprietor of Houston-based Gallery Furniture saw his chance at a $75-million fortune—which would be the largest recorded payout in the history of sports betting—slipping away Tuesday night in Philadelphia, watching in abject terror as the Phillies bludgeoned his beloved Astros in a 7-0 onslaught in one of the most lopsided World Series games in recent memory.
Here is Mack, seething from his perch behind the visiting dugout at Citizens Bank Park (those seats are going for about $6,000 a pop before processing fees on resale sites like Stubhub and Ticketmaster) as Bryce Harper rounds the bases, basking in the glory of his towering, first-inning blast to deep right field, the first of five homers surrendered by Astros starter Lance McCullers.
McIngvale had, by all accounts, a miserable evening in the great city of Philadelphia, learning the hard way that Phillies fans are not to be trifled with. As Houston’s plight worsened, so did Mack’s mood, with tempers flaring in the stadium concourse, where the Astros superfan was confronted by hecklers. Rattled at his core, McIngvale went scorched earth on his detractors, unleashing a stream of profanity that would make Samuel L. Jackson blush.
If so inclined, Mack could make a bundle by cashing out now or at least hedging by sprinkling some dough on the Phillies, though taking the easy way out has never been the furniture magnate’s MO, preferring to let it ride by risking it all on his hometown ‘Stros. Though McIngvale estimates he’s still a million or two in the black for his career (he’s been placing high-stakes wagers for about six years now), Mack has taken a bath of late, losing big on Super Bowl LVI, last year’s World Series and the College Football National Championship.
Mack’s Tuesday night at the ballpark couldn’t have been any worse, but the Astros still have a pulse, needing to win three of their next four games to stave off elimination. If the Astros can’t come back, this would be their third straight World Series defeat following losses to the Nationals and Braves in 2019 and 2021, respectively.
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