Best Horse Racing Bets Today | Saratoga, July 27

The top two favorites for this year’s Kentucky Derby, Fierceness and Sierra Leone will lead the way in Saturday’s running of the Grade 2 Jim Dandy Stakes at Saratoga.

With the $1.25 million Travers Stakes only four weeks away, the final prep for the summertime classic has attracted an intriguing field of six hoping to punch their ticket straight to the Spa’s biggest race. Preakness hero Seize the Grey and Ohio Derby winner Batten Down also merit serious respect in the 9-furlong test.

Not to be outdone by the classy sophomores, six older sprinters will do battle earlier in the afternoon in the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt Stakes. The speedy Skelly headlines the field, but Nakatomi, Baby Yoda, and Subrogate all look to challenge. The return of the highly regarded Speak Easy, as well as a full field of turf horses also have my attention on Saturday.

Without further ado, let's get to my picks and plays on another solid card at Saratoga.

Race #4 Allowance $110,000 6-Furlongs Dirt - 2:13pm EST

A very impressive winner in his debut at Gulfstream Park, Speak Easy will make his first start in six months as the likely favorite among a field of nine in this 6-furlong allowance early in the Saturday card at Saratoga.

Scratched out of the Grade 2 Fountain of Youth Stakes won by division leader Dornoch, the son of Constitution will make his long awaited second career start for trainer Todd Pletcher here. Having defeated a loaded maiden field in fast time in his debut six months ago, he likely only needs a similar performance here to get the job done in his return.

His competition is led by the hard-hitting veteran Be the Boss. A 5-year-old son of Laoban, he was a sharp allowance winner two starts back, before running into the talented Subrogate last time. Trained by Mike Maker, he sports a solid record at Saratoga with one win and two seconds from three starts at the Upstate New York oval.

Others of interest here include a pair of New York-breds. The speedy Mariachi was third last out in a Saratoga allowance race, while General Banker rallied to win an Aqueduct allowance race back in February in his most recent start. It’s a decent field, but Speak Easy should win this. He is my top pick.

My Play

• $20 Exacta Part Wheel - Speak Easy over Be the Boss and Edified = $40

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Race #6 Alfred G. Vanderbilt (Grade 1) $350,000 6-Furlongs Dirt - 3:20pm EST

One of the fastest horses in America, Skelly will look to get back to his winning ways when he headlines a field of six older sprinters set to battle it out in the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt stakes on Saturday at Saratoga 

Trained by Steve Asmussen, the 5-year-old son of Practical Joke had won nine straight races in the U.S. before being upset last time by Closethegame Sugar in the Aristides at Churchill Downs. His only other loss in the last 18 months came in the rich Riyadh Dirt Sprint in Saudi Arabia. With wicked early speed, he will look to start a new winning streak on the front end in the 6-furlong Vanderbilt.

There is good other speed in the race, which could help the cause of the second choice on the morning line, Nakatomi. Third in the Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Sprint last fall, the veteran from the barn of Wesley Ward is very dangerous on his best and could benefit from a strong early pace. This will be his first race since running third in the $2 million Dubai Golden Shaheen in March.

Of the rest, both Subrogate and Baby Yoda merit a good look. The former has never lost at a sprint distance in four tries and comes in off his best yet when romping home in an Aqueduct allowance. The latter is a talented sprinter who happens to do his best running at Saratoga. Coming off a big win over the track, I am going with the horse for course. Baby Yoda is my top pick.

My Plays

• $10 Exacta Part Wheel - Baby Yoda over Skelly, Nakatomi, and Subrogate = $30

• $5 Exacta Part Wheel - Skelly, Nakatomi, and Subrogate over Baby Yoda = $15

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Race #10 Jim Dandy Stakes (Grade 2) $500,000 1 1/8-Miles Dirt - 5:43pm EST

Having just missed in the Kentucky Derby and then third in the Belmont Stakes, Sierra Leone looks to regain his winning form when he cuts back to 9-furlongs and faces a talented field of five others in Saturday’s $500,000 Jim Dandy at Saratoga.

Looking to get a win before next month’s Grade 1 Travers Stakes, the son of Gun Runner began the year with nice rallying wins in the Grade 2 Risen Star and the Grade 1 Blue Grass before his near misses in the Derby and the Belmont. Trained by Chad Brown, Sierra Leone looks to have a tactical advantage here, with all the other top contenders in the race being speed horses.

His top threat on Saturday is the 2023 2-year-old champion Fierceness. The beaten Kentucky Derby favorite will be making his first since fading out badly at Churchill Downs. Before that he was a runaway winner of the Grade 1 Florida Derby at Gulfstream Park. The City of Light colt broke his maiden impressively at Saratoga last summer.

Two others to contend with are the Preakness winner Seize the Grey and the Ohio Derby winner Batten Down. Trained by Hall of Famers D. Wayne Lukas and Bill Mott respectively, both are dangerous with their high cruising speed. Along with Fierceness, however, it should be a contentious early pace. They say pace makes the race and I believe that will prove true here. The late running Sierra Leone is the top pick in this Grade 2 affair.

My Play 

• $50 Win - Sierra Leone = $50

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Race #11 Allowance $95,000 1 1/16-Miles Turf - 6:17pm EST

A full field of New York-bred runners will take to the turf in the race after the Jim Dandy, and the 1 1/16-mile allowance race appears to be a wide-open, good betting affair. Recent maiden winner Rabaja is the morning line favorite at 3/1.

Trained by James Bond, the son of Summer Front has improved in each of three career starts. Having run only once as a 2-year-old, he had a troubled trip when fifth in his 2024 debut. Off that effort, he went right to the front and won for fun against fellow maidens two months ago at Aqueduct.

The second choice on the morning line is Clear Conscience. A 4-year-old son of Blame, he has finished in the top three in four of his six starts on the grass. After running third in his seasonal debut on a sloppy track, he finished well to be second in an Aqueduct allowance race last out. A similar effort here makes him a treat on Saturday.

An interesting longshot in the field is Teta’s Trotter. Trainer David Donk continuously wins turf races at Saratoga each summer, and his charge here has already won once over the local course. That came in with a very solid performance in his debut. He faded against winners second time out, but back at Saratoga, I am looking for him to bounce back. At 15/1 on the morning line, he will be the top pick to pull off the upset here.

My Play

• $20 Win & Place - Teta’s Trotter = $40

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