Pick 3 of the Week: Santa Anita Saturday, September 26

Santa Anita will host five stakes races on Saturday, and I will include two graded tilts for the Pick 3 of the Week.  

Race 5 Wager

$1 Pick 3: all with 2,3 with 2,7 ($36)

Race 5 – Eddie D. (G2)

An especially well-matched group of nine will run about 6 1/2 furlongs down the hill in a difficult first leg of the sequence. Eight of the nine signed on have won going down the hill in the past, and I wouldn’t feel all that comfortable with anything but hitting the ‘all’ button in the fine field. 

Race 6 – Maiden Special Weight

California-bred juvenile fillies will dash six panels on the main oval in the middle portion of the wager. First-timer #2 Ember Royale (5-1) has trained well in advance of her unveiling, and I feel she has a big shot in the tilt. The Jeff Bonde trainee was a $50,000 yearling purchase with a two-year-old winning sibling, and she comes in with a pair of nice half-mile morning drills on the course. 

#3 Not So Merry Mary (9-5) ran a winning race in defeat, in my opinion, last time in her first try on the dirt and makes a ton of sense for Tim Yakteen. The gray daughter of Sir Prancealot is from a productive win-early family and will have Kimura on board.  

Race 7 – John Henry Turf Championship (G2)

I feel that trainer Richard Mandella has two major contenders in the 1 1/4-mile turf test in the closing leg of the play and will include both of his entrants. Brazilian Group 1 hero #2 Sinsel (15-1) ran evenly, traveling one mile in his stateside debut on Aug. 22 at Del Mar, and the five-year-old will improve a second time on U. S. sod while also getting more ground to work with. Good turf pilot Hector Berrios will be in the silks. 

#7 Atitlan (1-1) is a winner at the trip, owns a trio of tallies on the surface, and the five-year-old is also making his third run off the layoff. The son of The Factor was a close second in the Del Mar H. (G2) last time and will be very tough with even minor improvement on Saturday. Umberto Rispoli will be in the irons.