Most of the horses contesting the 2016 Triple Crown series arrived at the barns of their trainers roughly a year ago as 2-year-olds almost ready to begin their careers. With the exception of some homebreds, Thoroughbreds are generally foaled, raised, broken to saddle, and in some cases consigned and sold by other individuals prior to arriving with their racing connections.

ARCADIA, Calif. – Milton Freewater, a maiden race winner at Los Alamitos in April, was bought for $250,000 at the Barretts May sale of 2-year-olds in training at Del Mar on May 27. The colt is not far from his stakes debut.

Trainer Doug O’Neill said earlier this week that he is looking to run Milton Freewater in the $100,000 Everett Nevin Futurity at the Oak Tree at Pleasanton meeting July 3.

“He’s very professional,” O’Neill said. “I’ve only had a couple of days, but he seems like a special horse. When he won, he did it the right way.”

Charitable Man, fifth-leading general sire in West Virginia this year, was found dead in his stall yesterday at age ten.

The son of Lemon Drop Kid out of Charitabledonation, by Saint Ballado, had stood at Taylor Mountain Farm for a fee of $4,000 and was fifth on the 2015 West Virginia general sire list with just two crops of racing age.

Charitable Man, bred in Virginia by Edward P. Evans and raced by Mrs. and Mrs. William K. Warren, won three of eight starts, including two graded stakes, and earned $475,800.

Not For Love, a perennial leading sire in Maryland and prominent broodmare sire, died Sunday due to complications from colic. He was 26.

A son of Mr. Prospector out of the Northern Dancer mare Dance Number, Not For Love had been residing at Northview Stallion Station in Chesapeake City, Md., where he was pensioned in March 2015. He was a member of the Northview stallion roster since entering stud in 1996.

Trainer Wesley Ward on Tuesday will ship to England his contingent of runners being pointed for races at the prestigious Royal Ascot meeting, and on the plane will be the 2-year-old filly Big City Dreamin, by the obscure stallion Iqbaal.

The Fasig-Tipton Midlantic sale of 2-year-olds in training was truly a family affair for the Pike Racing consignment operation.

The sale was topped by a $1 million Uncle Mo filly whom Al Pike decided to pinhook for a longtime client because he was familiar with her family – and he watched her go through the ring for a near-record price with his wife, Salley, and son Colt, both integral parts of his operation, alongside.

Claiborne Farm freshman sire Algorithms got his first U.S. winner in smashing fashion Saturday at Pimlico, as Recruiting Ready flirted with the track record while rolling to a 10 1/4-length victory in a maiden special weight.

Recruiting Ready got his 4 1/2 furlongs in 51.78 seconds, just 0.28 seconds off the mark of 51.50 established by Countess Diana on June 6, 1997. Countess Diana would go on to be a multiple Grade 1 winner and champion 2-year-old filly of 1997.

Freshman sire Shackleford enjoyed an outstanding holiday weekend, breaking through with his first three winners in as many days.

The Forestry horse, who stands at Darby Dan Farm in Lexington, Ky., was represented by his first winner last Friday, when Little Nappy took a maiden special weight at Gulfstream Park. The colt is out of the Seeking the Gold mare French Laundry.

New York-based owner-breeder Patricia Generazio had an outstanding Saturday at Belmont Park.

First, Too Discreet flashed his speed to win the $100,000 Paradise Creek Stakes. In the race immediately following, the promising Disco Partner returned from a long layoff to win an allowance. Both are New York-bred homebreds for Generazio, and they are trained by Christophe Clement and James Ryerson, respectively. In both cases, Generazio and her husband, Frank, bred and raced the colts’ dams and grandams.

Japanese Triple Crown winner Deep Impact pulled off another triple to further burnish his résumé as one of his nation’s leading sires. He not only sired his third Japanese Derby winner, he swept the trifecta in the classic, with his three representatives only narrowly separated at the wire. Makahiki held off Satono Diamond by a nose, with Dee Majesty another half-length back in third.