BANKROLL

In lieu of something timely and witty (since I’ll be in Colorado through Monday), my bankroll section will focus much more on ticket construction advice.

SUNDAY’S PLAY: The Grand Slam can be a very fun wager when you have a strong lean in the payoff leg. I do on Sunday, as #6 ROCKETEER is my best bet of the card.

In an attempt to extract some value, I’ll play a $1 Grand Slam ticket starting in the seventh that goes as follows: 5,7,8 with 3,11 with 1,3,7 with 6. I’ll also have a $12 win ticket on Rocketeer as well, since it’s likely he’ll be the second choice and not the favorite (which hits me as an opportunity for an overlay).

TOTAL WAGERED: $30.

Winners and Whiners is your home for the best sportsbook bonuses on the market. Check out expert handicapping picks for all major sports, including baseball, basketball, hockey, and football!

SELECTIONS/ANALYSIS

Best Bet: Rocketeer, Race 10
Longshot: Kreesa, Race 3

R1

L’Imperator
Pickanumber
Abaan

#7 L’IMPERATOR (5/2): Broke through to win a Grade 1 downstate last time out (one that was supposed to be held here during the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, but got washed out). He’s proven without Lasix, seems to be in top form, and gets a few pounds from the likely favorite; #6 PICKANUMBER (5/2): Turned into a stakes horse overseas and most recently thumped 16 other jump horses by 15 lengths. If he brings his European form stateside for this high-percentage outlet, that could be good enough to top this classy bunch; #5 ABAAN (9/5): Is on a four-race win streak, including a few wins over my top selection. He carries this field’s top weight assignment, though, and must race over hurdles without Lasix for the first time. I respect him, but at his likely price, I’ll try to beat him in a fascinating renewal of the Grade 1 A.P. Smithwick.

R2

Broughty Ferry
Enigmatic
Yo Puedo

#4 BROUGHTY FERRY (6-1): Has a record that looks much better if you draw lines through her clunkers on turf. Do that, and you have four top-two finishes in five dirt starts, and she ran very well to just miss last time out at Churchill Downs; #1 ENIGMATIC (9/5): Will likely go favored in here after an easy score in an off-the-turf race downstate. Yes, the runner-up came back to win, but that was in another off-the-turf event. Given this one’s prior history in two-turn races, I think she may be overbet; #6 YO PUEDO (9/2): Has come back running this season with two seconds in Kentucky. She’s shown plenty of early zio, and she should be prominent early in a race without much other proven gate speed.

R3

Aaraj (MTO)
Kreesa
Devil in Disguise

#2 KREESA (15-1): Has run well here twice, both times against horses probably better than what he faces in this restricted claiming event. In a race with many horses that don’t seem to want to win, he has local form and has shown an interest in passing others late. Given his likely price, that’s enough for me; #10 DEVIL IN DISGUISE (7/2): Is a very, very tricky read. He won his debut in March and was less than 5-1 in a $150,000 stakes race. He comes back for a $40,000 tag without Irad Ortiz, Jr., up, and while his best race crushes these, there sure seem to be several large red flags; #5 JAVA BUZZ (9/2): Hasn’t run since March of 2023 and returns for Linda Rice, who trained him back in 2022. If he gets back to that form, he’s got a big shot, but that’s no small “if” given the layoff and this outfit’s recent cold spell with turf sprinters.

R4

Jitterbug
Past Tense
Ms Sedona

#4 JITTERBUG (5/2): Continues adding distance and exits a close-up fourth, one where she may have been a bit too forwardly-placed early on. Joel Rosario returns to ride for Christophe Clement, and I’m expecting her to sit back and make one big run; #7 PAST TENSE (3-1): Was second in the race my top pick exits and hasn’t done a heck of a lot wrong in her career. That last-out effort was probably a career-best effort, and a repeat could see her graduate here; #9 MS SEDONA (7/2): Has had gate issues in all three starts to date, which makes the rider switch to Luis Saez very interesting. He’s one of the best gate jockeys in the business, and if anyone can give this one a smooth beginning, it’s probably him.

R5

Shotgun Hottie
Raging Sea
Venti Valentine

#1 SHOTGUN HOTTIE (3/2): Has always been a force when she’s right, and the red-hot Cherie Devaux barn has her on the right track ahead of the Grade 2 Shuvee. She was most recently a tough-luck second in the Fleur De Lis at Churchill behind Scylla, and an argument can be made this is an easier spot; #3 RAGING SEA (7/5): Won the Grade 3 Doubledogdare two back before finishing a one-paced fourth in the Grade 1 Ogden Phipps on the Belmont undercard. She generally fires the same shot every time out, and first-call rider Flavien Prat certainly knows her very well; #2 VENTI VALENTINE (12-1): Loves Saratoga and is a candidate to sneak into the exotics at a price. Her best races have come against New York-breds, but she should get a pace to chase and it’s encouraging that Irad Ortiz, Jr., sees fit to ride back.

R6

Playingwithmatches
Briterdayzahead
Whenlovetakesover

#7 PLAYINGWITHMATCHES (8-1): Is protected from being claimed in his first start since December, which is something I always love to see. Many times, that’s a clue that a barn doesn’t want to lose a horse it thinks has talent. Take out his duds over wet tracks, and that record looks considerably better; #2 BRITERDAYZAHEAD (5/2): Takes a monstrous drop in class after two “speed and fade” efforts. The inside draw isn’t a bad thing, to be sure, but this seems panicky, and while a return to his mid-2023 form would crush these, his likely price hits me as a bit short…; #5 WHENLOVETAKESOVER (9/5): …which could also be said for this gelding, too. He ran well to cruise in a starter allowance three back at Aqueduct, but his last two efforts have left much to be desired. This is probably the right level, but isn’t 9/5 just too short to stomach?

R7

Wild and Free
Panache
Running Away

#8 WILD AND FREE (3-1): Has plenty of turf pedigree on the bottom and looms large for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher and top jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr. Her dam is a full sister to Grade 1 winner Bolo, and the strong half-mile grass workout on July 1st jumps off the page; #7 PANACHE (8-1): Has an experience edge over most of this field and should improve with a start under her belt and the surface switch. Among others, her dam is kin to a stakes-winning turfer, and this barn’s numbers with second-time starters are strong; #5 RUNNING AWAY (8-1): Debuts going long for Wesley Ward, which isn’t usually an angle I like. However, the pedigree says she wants route races. She’s by Gun Runner and boasts a female family that includes second dam Summerly, who won the Grade 1 Kentucky Oaks.

R8

Chasing Daylight (MTO)
Awesome Czech
Bunny Honey

#3 AWESOME CZECH (5-1): Takes a class drop second off the bench after a race that, in all honesty, wasn’t bad. She was fourth in the Wild Applause downstate in her first start since November, and any sort of step forward against state-bred allowance foes likely makes her the one to beat; #11 BUNNY HONEY (12-1): Doesn’t draw a great post, but her two turf routes have been strong and she gets the services of all-world jockey Frankie Dettori. This barn hits at a 28% clip with last-out winners, and while she’ll need to work out a trip, I don’t think she’s without a shot at a nice price; #7 FIRSTTIMEINFOREVER (2-1): May go favored in here, but I think she’s very beatable. She was second in a similar spot at Aqueduct in a race that she was almost certainly supposed to win. Her speed figures are flashy, but she’s also 0-for-3 since coming to New York.

R9

Kiss Me Slow
Black Dog
Immersive

#1 KISS ME SLOW (3-1): Debuts for Chad Brown off of a bullet four-furlong drill last week. That work was the fastest of 147 at the distance that morning, and it hints she could be ready to run to an all-world pedigree that includes third dam My Flag, one of the top female influences of the last 30 years; #3 BLACK DOG (7/2): Debuted with a solid third-place finish in Kentucky and ships here for start number two. She made up some ground in her unveiling, which is nice to see, and that could give jockey Tyler Gaffalione plenty of options; #7 IMMERSIVE (5-1): Makes her first start for Brad Cox, and this Godolphin homebred has a right to be a runner. The daughter of Nyquist has been working steadily in the mornings and exits a five-furlong drill from the gate at Churchill.

R10

Rocketeer
Seeking Unity
Black Rain

#6 ROCKETEER (3-1): Comes back to the allowance ranks after fading to finish fourth in the Grade 3 Matt Winn. He gets to run with Lasix in this spot, and given that his only prior try with Lasix doubled as his first start in almost six months, I’m anticipating a career-best performance; #4 SEEKING UNITY (8-1): Has turned a corner since being claimed by Rudy Rodriguez earlier this year. I don’t think there’s a ton of early speed signed on here, and that means he and jockey Flavien Prat could get pretty comfortable on or near the lead; #8 BLACK RAIN (8/5): Exits a race out of the Wilson chute where he was a distant second behind an impressive winner. He may go favored, but this is his first two-turn start, the far-outside draw isn’t ideal, and are we sure the horses he beat last time out while chasing a much-the-best winner were all that special?

R11

Shadow Dragon (MTO)
Let’s Go Big Blue
Locke and Key

#7 LET’S GO BIG BLUE (4-1): Returns to his favorite track for the Sunday finale and has plenty of potential to improve. His last-out effort at Aqueduct was a decent third, and I think he may have been a bit too close early on. His preferred trip, over a turf course where he’s never been beaten to the wire, would make him tough to beat; #8 LOCKE AND KEY (12-1): Has been competitive in all six prior 2024 outings and gets a huge rider switch to Frankie Dettori. He seemed to take to turf reasonably well last time out, and he might get more pace to chase here; #9 LIAR’S POKER (6-1): Is 3-for-4 lifetime and 2-for-2 since coming back from a layoff of nearly 18 months. Most recently, he dueled throughout and prevailed against first-level allowance foes, and of the ones with early speed, this is the one that seems most likely to be involved at the end.