Player Quick Pick: Monmouth for 7/26/2014
by D.S. Williamson
Sunday is Haskell Day at Monmouth Park, but that doesn’t mean the Jersey Shore race track doesn’t have an excellent card on Saturday. The feature on Saturday is the $75,000 Regret Stakes for fillies and mares.
Monmouth Park 9 | 4:44 pm ET Starter Handicap (16) for 3&up going 1 mi. (T)
1 – Screenplay – Sometimes, the chalk is the chalk for a reason. Everything looks to be going this seven-year-old gelding’s way in this race. A winner of $330K, Screenplay gets the advantageous post one where jockey Paco Lopez can save all of the ground around the first turn. Lopez should be able to secure a nice position right behind the speed before looking for an opening at the top of the stretch where he can get the chalk into a good position for a run to the wire. Trainer John Servis is winning at 26% at the meet.
5 – Silent Appeal – He’s won two in a row in front-running fashion, including the $60K Dan Horn Stakes. So, the quality is there. The jockey switch from Eddie Castro to Orlando Bocachica won’t matter at all since Bocachica is one of the better grass riders at Monmouth. If nobody goes with Silent Appeal early, he can wire this field. Pay attention to the tote board for more clues.
2 – Trusted Choice – Jockey C.C. Lopez stays aboard this Mark Henig trainee that has a decent 3-3-3 record out of 18 lifetime starts. Trusted Choice rated brilliantly in his last to win a race called off of the turf by 2 lengths. C.C. won’t get away with those fractions in this, but he’s a good enough jockey to change tactics if needed. This former $220K Keeneland September buy could upset these at big odds on Saturday.
Monmouth Park 10 | 5:15 pm ET Regret 3&up F&M going 6f
8 – She’s Ordained – This very quick five-year-old mare sired by Ministers Wildcat has been picking up paychecks finishing second and third in restricted stakes races over at Pimlico and Delaware this year. She goes back to Monmouth where she finished second in her only race over the dirt. Jockey Angel Quinones makes the trip to ride and with Salamera breaking from post-position one, Quinones should make out a good trip tracking Paco Lopez aboard Salamera. She should keep her odds, which makes her the one to think about for the win wager.
1 – Salamera – If She’s Ordained doesn’t break well; there is a good chance that Paco aboard Salamera will find himself loose on the lead. That will spell trouble for the rest of this field because Paco aboard a speed horse with nobody breathing down his neck usually means that horseplayers can start walking to the window to cash before they hit the top of the stretch. Don’t expect great odds, but keying exotics around Salamera on Saturday in this might be the smart thing to do.
2 – Geeky Gorgeous – The record at Monmouth is exceptional, 7-3-4 out of 15 lifetime races over the track, but she’s lost her last 2 races by a combined 7 lengths and she looked to be in good position to win in both. In fact, She’s Ordained, whose morning line is at higher odds than Geeky Gorgeous, finished ahead of her over the slop in a $50K race at Delaware in June. The form might be slipping away from Geeky Gorgeous, making her a tough one to put on top at likely under laid odds.
Sunday is Haskell Day at Monmouth Park, but that doesn’t mean the Jersey Shore race track doesn’t have an excellent card on Saturday. The feature on Saturday is the $75,000 Regret Stakes for fillies and mares.
Monmouth Park 9 | 4:44 pm ET Starter Handicap (16) for 3&up going 1 mi. (T)
1 – Screenplay – Sometimes, the chalk is the chalk for a reason. Everything looks to be going this seven-year-old gelding’s way in this race. A winner of $330K, Screenplay gets the advantageous post one where jockey Paco Lopez can save all of the ground around the first turn. Lopez should be able to secure a nice position right behind the speed before looking for an opening at the top of the stretch where he can get the chalk into a good position for a run to the wire. Trainer John Servis is winning at 26% at the meet.
5 – Silent Appeal – He’s won two in a row in front-running fashion, including the $60K Dan Horn Stakes. So, the quality is there. The jockey switch from Eddie Castro to Orlando Bocachica won’t matter at all since Bocachica is one of the better grass riders at Monmouth. If nobody goes with Silent Appeal early, he can wire this field. Pay attention to the tote board for more clues.
2 – Trusted Choice – Jockey C.C. Lopez stays aboard this Mark Henig trainee that has a decent 3-3-3 record out of 18 lifetime starts. Trusted Choice rated brilliantly in his last to win a race called off of the turf by 2 lengths. C.C. won’t get away with those fractions in this, but he’s a good enough jockey to change tactics if needed. This former $220K Keeneland September buy could upset these at big odds on Saturday.
Monmouth Park 10 | 5:15 pm ET Regret 3&up F&M going 6f
8 – She’s Ordained – This very quick five-year-old mare sired by Ministers Wildcat has been picking up paychecks finishing second and third in restricted stakes races over at Pimlico and Delaware this year. She goes back to Monmouth where she finished second in her only race over the dirt. Jockey Angel Quinones makes the trip to ride and with Salamera breaking from post-position one, Quinones should make out a good trip tracking Paco Lopez aboard Salamera. She should keep her odds, which makes her the one to think about for the win wager.
1 – Salamera – If She’s Ordained doesn’t break well; there is a good chance that Paco aboard Salamera will find himself loose on the lead. That will spell trouble for the rest of this field because Paco aboard a speed horse with nobody breathing down his neck usually means that horseplayers can start walking to the window to cash before they hit the top of the stretch. Don’t expect great odds, but keying exotics around Salamera on Saturday in this might be the smart thing to do.
2 – Geeky Gorgeous – The record at Monmouth is exceptional, 7-3-4 out of 15 lifetime races over the track, but she’s lost her last 2 races by a combined 7 lengths and she looked to be in good position to win in both. In fact, She’s Ordained, whose morning line is at higher odds than Geeky Gorgeous, finished ahead of her over the slop in a $50K race at Delaware in June. The form might be slipping away from Geeky Gorgeous, making her a tough one to put on top at likely under laid odds.
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