Amid the American League Division Series – currently tied at one-and-one – a Minnesota realtor has added fuel to the fire of the Twins and Astros rivalry. Local Houstonians may have noticed, particularly around the airport, an eye-brow-raising series of red-and-white billboards.
“Hey, Mattress Mack, You’ve Never Seen Twins Like This! Love, Kris Lindahl,” reads the sign, a play-on-words regarding the twin beds available at McIngvale’s Gallery Furniture.
Jim McIngvale – more commonly known around these parts at “Mattress Mack” – is an avid Astros fan. Last year, McIngvale placed an historic $10 million bet on the Astros winning the World Series, one that he won – netting $75 million.
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This year, McIngvale put up $1.9 million bet. According to Sports Illustrated, McIngvale stands to win $11 million if the Astros win.
In order to stoke a little friendly rivalry between the two teams, a prominent Minnesota realtor by the name of Kris Lindahl, unveiled a series of 45 billboards across Houston.
“He’s obviously a huge Astros fan and has a lot of passion toward them. That’s exactly how I feel about the Minnesota Twins in Minnesota, and so I thought it was a natural fit,” said Lindahl.
“For all of our fans from Minnesota that were traveling in, I wanted them to feel at home when they landed,” Lindahl said.
McIngvale was initially scheduled to throw the first pitch before the ALDS series starter, but was reportedly blocked by competitor Mattress Firm, a sponsor of Major League Baseball.
As for the billboards, McIngvale is a fan.
“I thought they were hilarious, and after the Astros win, he’s going to wish he hadn’t done it,” McIngvale said.
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