LEXINGTON, Ky. – Barnes, a graded stakes winner earlier this season, and Grade 1 winner Gaming, perhaps getting back to his best distance, have been sent to Keeneland by trainer Bob Baffert for Saturday’s Grade 3, $350,000 Perryville Stakes for 3-year-olds at seven furlongs. But both stablemates – Barnes, in particular – have turned in some puzzling efforts, meaning there might be room to look elsewhere in a small field. Beyond the Baffert pair, the field is made up of Owen Almighty, Rolando, Taylor’s Version, and Captain Cook, who lost a heartbreaker in a Grade 1 last out. All are stakes winners except for Taylor’s Version, who make his stakes debut off solid figures. “It’s only six horses, but it’s a very good little group of horses,” said Hunter Rankin, president of Flying Dutchmen, which owns Owen Almighty. “I think the winner of this race has the ability to go on to races like the [Grade 1] Malibu at the end of the year. I think it’s a very good indicator.” Barnes won his first two starts, including the Grade 2 San Vicente at seven furlongs, before stretching out to finish second to Journalism in the Grade 2 San Felipe after setting the pace. He was then fifth in the Santa Anita Derby. After a freshening, Barnes cut back and was an encouraging third, finishing with interest to be beaten 1 1/2 lengths in the Grade 1 H. Allen Jerkens in August at Saratoga. :: Play Keeneland with the most trusted information in horse racing! All Access Past Performances, Picks and more. Barnes looked poised to move forward following his first start in nearly five months. However, he was fourth as the heavy favorite in the Grade 2 Gallant Bob at Parx last out. Gaming, at 8-1 with the red-hot John Velazquez aboard, offers value compared to his 5-2 stablemate. Gaming won his first two starts last year, including the Grade 1 Del Mar Futurity at seven furlongs. All of his starts have come at a mile or beyond since. He could shine as he cuts back. Captain Cook is the morning-line favorite on the strength of his nose loss to Patch Adams after leading late in the seven-furlong Jerkens. It was his first start for Todd Pletcher after moving over from Rick Dutrow, for whom he won the Withers at 1 1/8 miles. Captain Cook’s Beyer Speed Figure of 103 was his career-best by 10 points and is the top last-out figure in the field. The concern is whether he bounces off that improved performance, although he has had plenty of time to recover. There are many reasons to draw a line through Owen Almighty’s poor effort in the Robert Hilton Memorial on Aug. 22 at Charles Town. Coming off a layoff in a seven-furlong race run around two turns, he chased a brutal early pace, then was steadied on the rail near the three-sixteenths pole before being eased. “He trained great into that race, and he has trained great out of that race,” Rankin said. “We didn’t find anything on him [physically]. He was fine and has trained very forwardly since, so [we] expect him to run well, and I hope he will.” :: Subscribe to the DRF Post Time Email Newsletter: Get the news you need to play today's races!  Owen Almighty has crossed the line first in both of his one-turn, seven-furlong starts, winning the Ellis Park Juvenile last year and finishing first in the Pasco at Tampa Bay Downs before being disqualified to fifth for interference. He had some solid efforts at two turns, winning the Grade 3 Tampa Bay Derby and finishing a creditable fifth after briefly leading in the Kentucky Derby. The decision was then made to cut him back again. “He’s built more like a one-turn horse,” Rankin said. “I think he’s had, obviously, some good two-turn races, but I think he’s ultimately probably better around one turn or a mile-type thing.” Taylor’s Version has won two of his three career starts on dirt and is coming off a 3 1/4-length allowance-level win at Churchill Downs. The 97 Beyer earned that day trails only Captain Cook as the top last-out number in the field. “He’s a really well-bred horse, we had to take our time getting him to the races, and [trainer Dale Romans] thought a lot of him all along,” Jason Loutsch of Albaugh Family Stables said. “We tried him on the turf just in case we wanted to take him to Kentucky Downs, and he showed right away he didn’t like that. We moved him back to a surface he likes and the distance he likes. So we thought the timing of [the Perryville] would be a good spot to find out where we’re at.” Taylor’s Version has scored wins at either six and 6 1/2 furlongs. Going to seven does not concern Loutsch, but the potential pace setup for the front-running winner of his last does. “It looks like there’s a tremendous amount of speed,” Loutsch said. “He’s gonna have to break sharp, and then hopefully he’ll take to Corey [Lanerie]’s commands. Honestly, [I] respect the heck out of the field.” :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.