"You always get a special kick on opening day, no matter how many you go through. You look forward to it like a birthday party when you're a kid. You think something wonderful is going to happen." - Joe DiMaggio
It's Opening Day at Del Mar! Sing it, Bing!
As a bit of a programming note, since I'm posting this play for Friday's card, I won't be publishing anything for Saturday. I may do something Sunday; we'll see how that goes. So with that, let's get to it, as I take a run at The Late Pick Four at the place Where The Turf Meets The Surf.
RACE 7 - OC 40k/N1X - Five Furlongs Turf
A’s
# 2 Little Juanito (Morning Line 6-1)
B’s
# 12 Bad Beat Brian (ML 6-1)
C's
# 1 Finally Here (ML 15-1)
# 3 Bedrock (ML 12-1) # 4 Superman (ML 15-1)
# 6 Bench Judge (ML 12-1)
# 7 Perfectionist (ML 5-1)
# 8 Jamming Eddy (ML 8-1)
# 9 Commander Khai (ML 10-1)
# 10 McWherter (ML 6-1) # 11 Posterize (ML 20-1)
Scratch # 5 Eddie Haskell (ML 4-1)
For those who note such things, the only runners in this field with a price tag on their heads are # 2 Little Juanito, # 8 Jamming Eddy, and # 12 Bad Beat Brian.
Little Juanito defeated more expensive stock last time out. But that was back in October at Santa Anita; and it's fair to be wary of a horse coming back off an extended vacation and being offered at a reduced price. But I think Little Juanito is well meant here, as Little Juanito has run very well in the past over this turf course, and Little Juanito has been working well leading up to this contest. So I'm going to trust that Little Juanito will be in solid form for this event, and will run accordingly.
Bad Beat Brian ships in from the east, and he should appreciate the drop in class. Bad Beat Brian is also going first off the claim for Trainer Billy Morey, who tends to do well with such. The backup "C" Selections are the rest of the field.
RACE 8 - OC 40k/N1X - Six and a Half Furlongs Dirt
A’s
# 3 Freedom Fighter (ML 7-2)
B’s
# 8 I Got No Munny (ML 6-1)
C's
# 2 Adare (ML 12-1)
# 5 Box of Chocolates (ML 8-1) # 6 Mr. Dougie Fresh (ML 12-1)
# 7 Team Merchants (ML 6-1)
# 10 Kahuna Magic (ML 15-1)
Scratch # 1 Savile Row (ML 4-1); # 4 Exaulted (ML 4-1); and # 9 Major Cabbie
For those who wish to know, the only runner that will be leaving the gate in this field with the $40k price tag on his head is # 6 Mr. Dougie Fresh.
Freedom Fighter could move up with the drop in class, and Freedom Fighter seems well suited to today's distance. I Got No Munny enters this event with a two race winning streak, both victories coming by margins of greater than five lengths. The backup "C" Selections are everyone else.
RACE 9 - [R] The Oceanside $100k - Eight Furlongs Turf
A’s
# 5 Petruchio (ML 12-1)
B's
# 6 Dream Shake (ML 4-1)
# 8 Flashiest (ML 6-1)
# 11 None Above the Law (ML 8-1)
# 13 Whatmakessammyrun (ML 7-1) # 14 Hockey Dad (ML 20-1)
C's
# 1 Harbored Memories (ML 20-1)
# 2 Fighting Force (ML 6-1)
# 3 Crew Dragon (ML 6-1)
# 7 Jungle Cry (ML 20-1)
# 9 No Foolery Here (ML 20-1)
# 12 Ingest (ML 30-1)
Scratch # 4 Brutto (ML 20-1) and # 10 Mucho Del Oro (ML 20-1)
The restriction on this contest for three year olds is that entrants can not have won a Stakes at a distance of eight furlongs or more in 2021 where the winner's share of the purse was $50k or more.
Petruchio disappointed as the Post Time Favorite last time out while taking the Place in the $100k Singletary at Santa Anita. Petruchio is also the only runner in this field to have a prior Win over this turf course.
Dream Shake is Graded Stakes placed, so he fits well here on class. But Dream Shake is trying the turf for the first time, so there's no guarantees that Dream Shake will take to the grass.
Flashiest has shown steady improvement in each of his prior three starts. None Above the Law won the $75k Alcatraz by daylight two starts back up at Golden Gate Fields.
Whatmakessammyrun enters this contest with a two race winning streak, both by solid margins. The question with Whatmakessammyrun is how he will handle the distance.
Hockey Dad is lifetime two-for-two on the turf. The backup "C" Selections are the rest of the field.
RACE 10 - Alw 50000s N2L - Eight Furlongs Dirt
A’s
# 2 Ox Bridge (ML 5-1)
B’s
# 7 The Longest Night (ML 4-1)
# 8 Albizu (ML 7-2)
# 10 Willy the Cobbler (ML 5-1)
C's
# 3 Reckoning Day (ML 15-1)
# 4 Mongolian Legend (ML 6-1)
# 5 Active Account (ML 20-1)
# 6 The Beat (ML 15-1)
# 9 Exalted Joy (ML 4-1)
# 11 Uncle Jeff (ML 5-1)
Scratch # 1 Mount Pelliar (ML 7-2) and # 12 Took Charge (ML 6-1)
Note for future reference that this contest is for runners which have not won two races in their career. For some reason, for whatever reason, that information is rarely, if ever, included in the running lines of the Past Performances.
Ox Bridge could move up with the drop in class. The Longest Night graduated at Santa Anita last time out, coming off a layoff of over a year. Normally last out Maiden Claiming winners are a horrible bet; but Trainer Phil D'Amato tends to well when placing such.
Albizu could move up with the drop in class; though it remains to be seen how Albizu will handle the distance. Willy the Cobbler defeated non-Claiming Maidens last time out by over five lengths; perhaps Willy the Cobbler can duplicate that effort today. The backup "C" Selections are everyone else.
OK, that's the analysis. Playing my tickets in modified Crist fashion, I get:
All A Entries
$1.00 P4: 2 with 3 with 5 with 2 $1.00
All A Entries with All B Entries
$0.50 P4: 2,12 with 3,8 with 5,6,8,11,13,14 with 2,7,8,10 $48.00
A's with One C
$0.50 P4: 1,3,4,6,7,8,9,10,11 with 3 with 5 with 2 $4.50
$0.50 P4: 2 with 2,5,6,7,10 with 5 with 2 $2.50
$0.50 P4: 2 with 3 with 1,2,3,7,9,12 with 2 $3.00
$0.50 P4: 2 with 3 with 5 with 3,4,5,6,9,11 $3.00
Total: $62.00
Post Time for Race 7 is 8:00 EDT / 5:00 PDT. Good luck to all.
Peace and Love,
Jimbo
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