Bernier: How I'll play Santa Anita on Saturday, Oct. 29

While there is some solid racing this weekend, everyone in the world of horse racing has the Breeders’ Cup on their mind, and I’m no different. Saturday at Santa Anita will be light for me, as I already have a wandering eye toward the races at Santa Anita next Friday and Saturday. This Saturday, I’ll look to play a daily double, beginning in race 7.

RACE 7

Four of these 2-year-old maidens exit a common event here Oct. 8, and I didn’t particularly love anything about the race. While SONNEKER (7) rallied nicely from the back of the pack, there were a number of runners who had minor issues throughout the journey – most notably TROUBLEWITHATEE (6). Santiago Gonzalez rode Troublewithatee that day for trainer Phil D’Amato, and while he didn’t have an awful trip, he certainly didn’t have the cleanest of races. Stuck behind runners with nowhere to go rounding the far turn, this son of Into Mischief snuck up the wood turning for home and put in a brief bid before flattening late. With a cleaner trip this time around, Troublewithatee could be interesting. Bob Baffert saddles two first-time starters in this race, and I’ll use both with equal weight. SHOW ME DA LUTE (5) is a full brother to graded-stakes-winning dirt router Tiz Midnight, so the distance shouldn’t be an issue for this colt. SPORTS REPORTER (3) is the other Baffert entered, and while the pedigree isn’t quite as flashy as Show Me Da Lute’s, this Awesome Again colt is by a mare who won the Delaware Oaks as a 3-year-old.

RACE 8 – AUTUMN MISS STAKES

There are two runners I’m planning on focusing on. DANILOVNA (1) was visually spectacular when winning her North American debut at Belmont Park on Sept. 22, and a replica of that effort would make her a major player here. Graham Motion has been on a tremendous hot streak recently, and his numbers at Santa Anita have been quite strong. (Formulator Fact: Over the past three years on turf with last-out winners running in graded stakes, O’Neill is 3 for 9, with five in-the-money finishes and an ROI of $6.73 ROI.) The second horse I’m interested in is far from the likeliest winner, but I believe she’ll offer significant value – particularly in the doubles. NODIAC (6) finished with a rush most recently when going down the hill, and she’s shown the ability to stretch out in distance. There figures to be a reasonable pace here, so Nodiac should have every opportunity to get the job done at what figures to be a square number.

THE PLAYS
3, 5, 7 / 1
3, 5, 7 / 6