Baeza, third in the Kentucky Derby on May 3, worked a slow half-mile in 53.60 seconds at Santa Anita on Friday in preparation for a scheduled start in the Grade 1 Belmont Stakes at Saratoga on June 7. Ridden by Hector Berrios, Baeza had the slowest of 43 recorded works at the distance on the main track. The time was not a concern for trainer John Shirreffs. “He was very relaxed and doing it very easily,” Shirreffs said. “He looked really nice.” Flavien Prat is booked to ride Baeza in the $2 million Belmont Stakes at 1 1/4 miles, but Berrios is closely allied with Shirreffs and rode Baeza three times earlier this year. Earlier this month, Berrios rode the Shirreffs-trained Atitlan to a win in the Grade 2 Charles Whittingham Stakes at Santa Anita. Berrios is booked to ride Atitlan in the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile at Santa Anita on May 26. :: Playing Santa Anita? Get the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances, Picks, and Clocker Reports available now. Baeza, who races for Lee and Susan Searing’s CRK Stable and Robert Clay’s Grandview Equine, has won once in five starts, a maiden race at a mile at Santa Anita in February. Baeza was second by three-quarters of a length to Journalism in the Grade 1 Santa Anita Derby on April 5, and was beaten 1 3/4 lengths at 13-1 by Sovereignty in the Kentucky Derby. Berrios rode Baeza three times earlier this year, most recently in the Santa Anita Derby. Sovereignty was held out of Saturday’s Preakness Stakes at Pimlico in favor of a scheduled start in the Belmont Stakes. Journalism, second in the Kentucky Derby, will be a heavy favorite in the Preakness Stakes. Shirreffs said on Friday that Baeza will have two more workouts before the Belmont Stakes. In other works at Santa Anita on Friday, Barnes, who finished last of five in the Santa Anita Derby in his last start, worked a half-mile in 48 seconds. Friday’s workout was the first for Barnes since the Santa Anita Derby. Trained by Bob Baffert, Barnes won his first two starts, which included the Grade 2 San Vicente Stakes at seven furlongs at Santa Anita on Jan. 4. In his first start around two turns, Barnes finished second by 1 3/4 lengths as the 2-5 favorite to Journalism in the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes at 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on March 1. In the Santa Anita Derby, Barnes was within 1 1/2 lengths of the lead on the backstretch before fading through the stretch. Beyond Brilliant back in training  Beyond Brilliant, a three-time stakes winner for the Searings and Shirreffs in 2021 and 2022, is being prepared for a comeback after a layoff of more than 30 months. A 7-year-old, Beyond Brilliant was sidelined by tendon problems, which has led to the lengthy layoff. Beyond Brilliant has had a steady pattern of workouts since mid-April, including a half-mile in 49 seconds at Santa Anita on Thursday. “He’s coming along,” Shirreffs said. “He had a tendon and we gave him lots of time. We’ve been taking it slowly and hopefully he makes it.” Beyond Brilliant has won 5 of 16 starts and earned $776,780. He won the Grade 1 Hollywood Derby at 1 1/8 miles on turf in November 2021 for his first stakes win. As a 4-year-old in 2022, Beyond Brilliant won the Charles Whittingham Stakes and Grade 2 City of Hope Mile at Santa Anita before finishing eighth behind Modern Games in the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Del Mar. Beyond Brilliant has not raced since he finished second by a neck to Hong Kong Harry in the Grade 2 Seabiscuit Handicap at Del Mar in late November of 2022. Beyond Brilliant was in training in the late summer and fall of 2023 before he was sidelined again when the tendon issue recurred. Shirreffs said he is taking a cautious approach to Beyond Brilliant’s return. “We tried one time” for a comeback, Shirreffs said. “We had to give him more time.” Considering Beyond Brilliant’s success in 2021 and 2022, Shirreffs is eager to see the veteran return to racing. “He could run, that sonofagun,” Shirreffs said. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.