Ricky’s Rockets ?: Saratoga Picks for July 19, 2020

I swept the back half of Friday’s Saratoga card, bringing home the Empire 6, the Late Pick 5, and the Late Pick 4 for a 4x profit. We also brought home the Early Pick 5 and the Early Pick 4 on Haskell day at Monmouth Park. After a fantastic day of Sunday stakes action, the Lake Placid Stakes (G2) is the feature for 3-year-old fillies going two turns on the inner turf.

Best of luck!

Race 7: Maiden Special Weight for 2-year-old fillies going 5 1/2 furlongs on the dirt

#1 Iaintafraidanoghost‘s trainer Jeremiah Englehart has won 20% with first-time starters in the last 365 days. #4 Caldee will try to give trainer Brad Cox his first win of the meet; he wins 23% historically with juveniles. #5 Capstone Girl gets John Velazquez aboard and has matched stablemate Iaintafraidanoghost in morning works. #9 Lucifers Lair has top connections in jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr., and trainer Todd Pletcher, who wins 20% with juveniles. The only downside is that she will likely be a short price.

Race 8: Allowance for New York-bred fillies and mares 3-year-olds and upward going 5 1/2 furlongs on the outer turf

#3 Winifred J has shown speed at this level in prior starts. She’s probably not strong enough to hold on, but should play a role in the race. #4 My Sassy Sarah closed well in a 6-furlong sprint last time out after a layoff and has every right to take a step forward in her second start back. #5 Light in the Sky was ahead of My Sassy Sarah in that race, missing the win by just a neck.

Race 9: Lake Placid Stakes for 3-year-old fillies going 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on the inner turf

#6 Stunning Sky is my top choice in this wide-open event. She ultimately might be better at longer distances down the road, but she sure storms home in a hurry, and there should be enough pace up front to keep the pace honest. I’m also using #2 Blame Debbie, #3 Lashara, and #8 Cat’s Pajamas.

Race 10: $16k Claiming for 3-year-olds and upward going 1 1/8 miles (9 furlongs) on the dirt

#2 Control Group runs for Rudy Rodriguez, who properly places his claimers in the right spots. Because of this, they tend to run better than their form with prior trainers. #7 Malibu Pro is one of the more consistent runners in this race, but his one knock is that he hasn’t won in over a year. He’s a bad favorite but must be used defensively in multi-race sequences.

THE TICKET

50¢ PICK 4 (Races 7-10) 1,4,5,9 / 3,4,5 / 2,3,6,8 / 2,7 – $48

Sunday, July 19, 2020

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Ricky’s Rockets: Saratoga