A Manny Machada Grand Slam Pays Off Big For One Bold Sports Bettor

It takes a special kind of sports bettor to risk $200,000 on an MLB total line. Even if you had money to burn, placing that kind of wager on a Wednesday night game takes guts.Elisa Richardson is the head of communications and public relations for the online sportsbook BetMGM.

She confirmed that the $200,000 wager was placed on Aug. 12. The bet was the OVER on the 7 ½-run total line. The game was an interleague matchup between the Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres.

How Much Did One Bold Bettor Win Betting On A Manny Machada Grand Slam?

Things looked great for the book and bleak for the bettor after eight innings. The Padres brought a 2-1 lead into the ninth inning. The first momentum swing was a solo Joey Gallo home run for Texas. That tied the score at two in the top of the inning. He was facing Matt Strahm as opposed to San Diego’s normal closer Drew Pomeranz.

The Padres failed to respond in the bottom half of the ninth to send the game to extra innings.

The new MLB rule for overtime starts each extra inning with a runner on second. Texas was able to add a run in the top of the 10th for a 3-2 lead. This was still three runs away from taking the 7 ½-run total OVER.

San Diego used a sacrifice bunt to move its runner on second to third to start the bottom of the 10th. The next momentum changer was a pair of walks to Trent Grisham and Fernando Tatis Jr. Suddenly the bases were loaded with one out.

Next up for the Padres was Manny Machado. All he really needed to do was punch a single through the gap. That probably would have been enough to score two runs to win the game. The final score would be 4-3 with the total staying UNDER.

You can only imagine how fast that bettor’s heart was beating when Machado stepped to the plate. Although, to place a six-figure bet on a MLB total line takes ice water in your veins.

This was not the worst player to have on your side needing three runs to win the bet. Machado has come to the plate 83 times in his career with the bases loaded. He has managed to hit 10 grand slam home runs in that situation. That equates to a 12 percent chance he could do it again.

Working against the impossible was Machado’s overall home run rate. MLB stats point out that in more than 4,800 total plate appearances, he hits a home run just 4.4 percent of the time.

Sometimes things are just meant to be. What looked like a sure loss eight innings into the game turned out to be a $181,000 pay day. Machado successfully knocked the ball out of the park for the 11th time in 84 grand slam opportunities.

This is a great example of the fine line that is sports betting. It is also an example of crazy.