McGee: How I'll play Aqueduct for Sunday, Nov. 18

Pick-3, races 4-6

A couple of mid-card live wires will be the focus of my Sunday attention at Aqueduct as I go all-in on back-to-back singles. Here’s the play:

Race 4: This isn’t the first time Danny Gargan has taken a horse from Chad Brown, taken a little time to get to know the animal, and then aggressively entered him/her back for less than the original claiming price. That’s the ploy here with Wise Strike (2), who was haltered for $50,000 and now goes turf to dirt while turning back for $40,000 as strictly the filly to beat.

Race 5: Remember all those heavily backed Todd Pletcher first-timers whose efforts at Saratoga were hampered by poor starts? Well, Angelia (2) is one of those. Duly regrouped, presumably with some gate schooling, I’ll be looking for a far better break as she makes a much improved impression this second time around.

Race 6: There should be an honest to wicked pace in this turf mile, given the presence of Strike (10) and a couple of others, so I’ll look for superior class to prevail in the final furlong when buying sufficient coverage with Flyoff (1), Rapt (4), Mo Diddley (5), Morrison (6), and Another (9).

Here’s the straight-A ticket:
R4: 2
R5: 2
R6: 1, 4, 5, 6, 9

$5 ticket = $25