The Schuylerville Stakes is billed at Saratoga on opening day Friday, July 21. We will run down that juvenile event along with the Sanford Stakes, which will be run on Saturday.
The Schuylerville Stakes is for 2-year-old fillies going six furlongs on dirt. It is a Grade 3 event and 60% of the purse will go to the winner.
Mel’s Gone Wild will have to come out running to flee the rail in this edition of the Schuylerville Stakes. She was bet like a good thing to start her racing career at Parx Racing on June 17 and she led every step of the way to earn a 78 Beyer Speed Figure. Trained by Kathleen DeMasi, she will be ridden by Kendrick Carmouche.
Buy Sell Hold has already repaid her $67,000 purchase price. She won her debut at Keeneland in April and then proved it was no fluke taking the Kentucky Juvenile Stakes at Churchill Downs.
Best Performance started her career on a winning note and was far from disgraced running second in the $150,000 Astoria Stakes on June 8. She is cut out to be a nice horse as she brought $300,000 at auction.
Dream It Is brings an unbeaten two for two record into the Schuylerville Stakes but she will be running on dirt for the first time. This miss won both of her races on the Tapeta surface at Woodbine but she did extend nicely winning the $101,000 My Dear Stakes on June 24.
Limited View seems to have a limited chance in the Schuylerville Stakes. Expectations cannot be very high on this $5,200 purchase, but she did win her debut at Laurel.
Pacific Gal gets fresh Lasix today. Lasix is a diuretic. For horses it is used as an anti-bleeding medication. When horses are over extended, they have tendency to bleed from the lungs and Lasix helps in this situation. Pacific Gal prevailed in her debut but was tiring late. She paid 16-1 and is trained by the clever conditioner John Kimmel.
Laudation is one of two fillies in the Schuylerville Stakes that is trained by Steve Asmussen. She has not been quite as impressive as her stablemate Buy Sell Hold and will likely have to come from off the pace in this race. There is class on the bottom side as Laudation’s dam won multiple Grade 2s and earned nearly $400,000.
Snowfire is yet another debut winner. She could be value in this race and her connections are high on her as she cost $500,000. She will be accompanied by jockey Julien Leparoux and will try to have the same successful career as her dam. Snowfire’s dam won a plethora of stakes and banked nearly $800,000.
Stainless got an ideal two-hole trip winning her debut at Gulfstream in late May. She has been freshened for this by Todd Pletcher and she showed renewed energy in her work out on July 15.
Snowfire, who could be around 6-1, get the call in the Schuylerville Stakes. She is the only one in the field that has won at six furlongs and she did it in a manner that suggests great potential.
Saturday’s juvenile stakes is the Grade 3, $150,000 Sanford and eight youngsters will enter the starting gate.
Psychoanalyze was on his game at 14-1 to kick off the career. He brings the top last-race Beyer in the party and the winner of this race last year Bitumen was coming off a winning 86 Beyer Speed Figure. This runner’s connections may have options down the line as the lone sibling won on grass. Note the show horse in this racer’s debut won next out in a MSW at Delaware with a 62 Beyer. He must be respected and should give a good account of himself.
Bal Harbour was educated in the debut but extremely professional in the diploma run. He moves to Johnny Velasquez, who has won the Sanford seven times. There is some class on the bottom side as this runner’s dam won a stakes. The blood extends also as sibling Charleymillionaire was stakes placed. This youngster got a feel of the surface last Saturday and that should only help today.
Firenze Fire didn’t exactly look like a sure thing at the top of the lane in last when only in front by a head but the runner just took off from there in a fine win. He was flattered a bit when the place horse in last took a state-bred MSW at Monmouth July 2 with a 61 Beyer. Trainer Jason Servis can keep them rolling once they are thriving to the tune of 34%.
Free Drop Billy has a nice turn of late kick. A lot of young horses are not great at passing runners but this one pulled it off in the debut and the place horse was well clear of his nearest rival. This runner’s dam was Grade 3 placed and dam also dropped Group 1 winner and over $750,000 earner Hawkbill. The colt is feeling pretty good about himself after he posted a bullet drill on the 9th.
Admiral Jimmy was a poorly-kept secret in the debut. This colt has the stakes experience to draw from now and that could play a part of the drama inside the eighth pole. The pedigree is just fine as the lone sibling Velvet Mood won all three starts. Considering what this runner has been through so far, he may need to really improve to make an impact here.
Baffin flashed excellent to kick off the career. He gets the class from the precocious dam, who did win a stakes. The most prominent sibling Reata’s Quik Punch took a stakes and earned over $200,000. The sixth and ninth finishers in the opener beat MSW foes at Ellis Park next out. Slight improvement and this one will be a handful.
Direct Dial has a right to have a nice career as there are a couple of six-figure earners in the family. The runner showed renewed energy in the work on the 14th. Clever rider Jose Ortiz got a chance to figure out the talent level of this Texas-bred charge last and that bodes well for another big effort.
Nauti Buoy blew up the tote on grass at 29-1 in his debut but not sure he was beating anybody. The favorite in the opener was coming off a fourth at Laurel and gave up a clear lead at the top of the lane. He ships in from Penn National and over the decades, many shippers from that track have disappointed.
Since the form of these racers has not really been established, it seems to be a completely wide-open affair. Baffin gets the call. The runner seems to have an extra gear and that could propel him to victory.
Good luck.
