SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Typically by this time of the meet in recent years, it is a fait accompli who will be leading trainer at Saratoga. Usually, the only question left to be answered is how many wins Todd Pletcher will have come the end of the meet on Labor Day.

DEL MAR, Calif. – With his victories Sunday in the Pacific Classic and Del Mar Mile, as well as two other races on the card, jockey Mike Smith continued his spectacular season here, where he leads all riders in stakes wins and is just two wins back of the top spot in the overall standings despite riding far fewer horses.

“He’s a sensational big-money rider,” said Jerry Hollendorfer, the trainer and co-owner of Shared Belief, who won the Pacific Classic. “Mike is really in the groove.”

Trainer Bill Kaplan has confirmed East Hall as a starter for the Grade 2 Super Derby at Louisiana Downs and said he plans to breeze the horse at Gulfstream Park on Saturday before shipping him out by van the following day.

East Hall, the winner of the Ohio Derby in his last start, was under consideration for the $75,000 Monarchos at Gulfstream this Saturday, but Kaplan said he feels comfortable giving the late-running gelding a shot at bigger money a week later in the $400,000 Super Derby.

Russell Baze said he had a “fun” day Sunday, and it wasn’t simply because he rode five winners at Golden Gate Fields.

Make no mistake: Baze, the world’s winningest rider, likes winning. But there was more than just the five wins – only two on favorites – that made the day special.

On Sunday morning, he accompanied the undefeated Look Quickly through an easy 47.80-second half-mile drill in her final prep before her return to racing Friday, when she’ll meet older rivals in an allowance sprint.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – If trainer Rick Violette had any trepidation about running his top 2-year-old prospect Upstart on just nine days’ rest in last Sunday’s Funny Cide Stakes, it certainly prove unfounded. Upstart won the race for 2-year-old New York-breds in impressive fashion and earned a 95 Beyer Speed Figure.

Now Violette will give Upstart a little time off before pointing him to either the one-mile Champagne at Belmont Park or the 1 1/16-mile Breeders’ Futurity at Keeneland, both on Oct. 4.

DEL MAR, Calif. – This was not where jockey Elvis Trujillo expected to be by the end of August.

At the start of 2014, Trujillo was at Gulfstream Park, rebounding from a collarbone injury that left him sidelined in the final months of 2013. A few months into this year, he broke up with his agent and soon after received a telephone call from agent Tom Knust in California.

“Tom said, ‘Do you want an opportunity?’ ” Trujillo recalled last weekend.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Social Inclusion, who finished third in both the Wood Memorial and Preakness earlier this year, will be sidelined indefinitely due to a tendon injury, trainer Chad Brown reported Monday.

Social Inclusion was transferred from his former trainer, Manny Azpurua, to Brown by owner Ron Sanchez within days of his seventh-place finish in the Grade 1 Haskell at Monmouth Park on July 27. Brown subsequently sent Social Inclusion to Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Kentucky to be examined by Dr. Larry Bramlage, who diagnosed Social Inclusion’s injury.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. - Jockey Junior Alvarado picked up his 1,000th career victory in North America Monday at Saratoga when he guided Skerkis to an 8 1/2-length victory in the fourth race.

“It always comes when I least expect it,” Alvarado said in the winner’s circle afterward. “I’ve been on [999] since Friday with a lot of good mounts, good horses, expecting this one will be the one.”

Alvarado went winless with 12 mounts between victories 999 and 1,000. He finished second aboard a couple of favorites in stakes on Sunday’s card.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The works are done. The weights seem reasonable. The weather forecast looks fine.

It appears everything is in order for Wise Dan to return to the races in Saturday’s Grade 2, $250,000 Bernard Baruch Handicap at Saratoga. The race would be the first for Wise Dan since he won the Grade 1 Turf Classic at Churchill Downs on May 3. Two weeks later, Wise Dan underwent colic surgery.

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Miss Behaviour, runner-up to Sweet Reason in the Grade 1 Test at Saratoga on Aug. 2, will return for Saturday’s Grade 2, $300,000 Prioress Stakes, trainer Phil Schoenthal confirmed on Monday.

Miss Behaviour came out of the Test with superficial cuts on her hind leg, but they did not interrupt her training, Schoenthal said. Last Thursday, Miss Behaviour worked four furlongs in 48.60 seconds at Laurel Park.