Mattress Mack back on Astros to win World Series
Back in March, just before the MLB regular season began, Jim "Mattress Mack" McIngvale thought it would be worthwhile to once again get involved with his Houston Astros in the World Series odds market.
And why not? By winning the 2022 World Series, the Astros delivered more than $70 million in winnings to McIngvale on a handful of seven-figure futures wagers. So Mattress Mack plunked down $1.9 million at Caesars Sports on the Astros +600 to win the 2023 World Series.
In mid-September, with the regular season approaching its end, McIngvale came back with another monster Astros play. The Houston furniture store magnate discussed that major wager and more with FOX Sports.
Let's dive into just how much he has riding on the Astros.
Mackster's Millions
On Sept. 15, McIngvale decided to add to his Astros portfolio with a $2 million play at DraftKings Sportsbook on Houston +600 to win the World Series. So his current running total is $3.9 million in bets, for a potential profit of $23.4 million.
To refresh everyone's memory: McIngvale's big bets are usually a hedge against his furniture store promotions. In this instance, if Houston wins a second straight World Series, customers who bought $3,000 or more in specified mattresses will get a full refund on those purchases.
So if the Astros win, Mack cashes his betting tickets and pays back his customers. If the Astros fall short, Mack loses his bets, but his business retains all the money from the mattress purchases.
What prompted the second big play?
"We've had an uptick in sales, and the Astros are in the middle of being in the pennant chase," McIngvale said. "It's a horse race, obviously. Who knows who's gonna come out in front?"
It's a tough horse race for the Astros. Houston is 2.5 games behind Texas in the AL West. And in a tightly bunched playoff chase, that puts the Astros in the third and final wild-card slot.
Which is not ideal. But McIngvale is optimistic.
"The Astros are still a very potent team," he said. "It's a different dynamic these last [few] games. It'll be interesting to see who gets the wild card and who gets the bye."
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Make the Bet/Take the Bet
Caesars Sports was also a big part — in fact, the biggest part — in McIngvale's 2022 World Series haul. Caesars took Mattress Mack's $3 million bet on Astros +1000. So that wager alone paid out a whopping $30 million when the Astros beat the Phillies in the 2022 Fall Classic.
As noted above, Mack has a $1.9 million bet at Caesars this year. DraftKings, which was not a part of McIngvale's 2022 betting bonanza, is happy to be part of the 2023 festivities, accepting his $2 million bet.
"Mack is not only a great customer but a great guy," said Johnny Avello, director of sportsbook operations for DraftKings. "He loves his Astros, and we wish him the very best of luck."
Now, McIngvale has to decide when — or if — to invest any more money in Astros World Series wagers. With Houston falling out of first place in the AL West over the past week, its odds have stretched out to +900. So Mattress Mack would now get better odds.
However, Houston's path to another title will be more challenging if it ends up in a wild-card series.
"I think the strategy is to see if it comes down to the last two or three games of the season," McIngvale said — and it appears it will. "If sales continue to pick up, I might make a bet before the regular season ends."
Patrick Everson is a sports betting analyst for FOX Sports and senior reporter for VegasInsider.com. He is a distinguished journalist in the national sports betting space. He's based in Las Vegas, where he enjoys golfing in 110-degree heat. Follow him on Twitter: @PatrickE_Vegas.