Battle of Midway progresses on comeback trail

Trainer Jerry Hollendorfer hopes to get a race into Battle of Midway, last year’s Breeders’ Cup Dirt Mile winner, before the meet ends Sept. 3, and Battle of Midway moved closer to that Sunday with a six-furlong work in 1:13.80 under Flavien Prat.

“He galloped out well. I’d like to run him here if I could,” Hollendorfer said.

Battle of Midway could be nominated to the $75,000 Harry Brubaker Stakes on Aug. 22, but Hollendorfer would have time to get only one more work into him. The work Sunday was his first six-furlong drill since being put back into training.

Battle of Midway was at stud earlier this year but was found to be subfertile and was put back into training.

Fillies bound for Saratoga

The unbeaten 3-year-old filly Dream Tree and Moonshine Memories, who was scratched from the Rancho Bernardo on Sunday, both are bound for the Grade 2, $250,000 Prioress Stakes on Sept. 2 at Saratoga.

Dream Tree has not raced since winning the Las Virgenes Stakes at Santa Anita in February, but she has been training sensationally at Del Mar for her return for Bob Baffert, including a six-furlong drill from the gate Sunday in 1:12.40, the best of 19 at the distance.

Moonshine Memories, trained by Simon Callaghan, went five furlongs in 1:02.40 on Monday.

Also bound for Saratoga will be Baffert trainees Abel Tasman and Marley’s Freedom, both of whom worked Monday for Grade 1 races on the Travers undercard Aug. 25. Abel Tasman, headed to the Personal Ensign, went five furlongs in 1:00.40, while Marley’s Freedom, ticketed to the Ballerina, worked seven furlongs in 1:26.20.