Santa Anita Handicap
 

Big Cap Day at Santa Anita Park and a mandatory payout rainbow pick 6!!! Check out our picks for today's big day! We also have an added bonus of Jason "The Cashier" Kassa giving picks for the pick 6 at Gulfstream!


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Put up or shut up for Maxfield.

I wouldn't play SA unless you are using TF figs.......at SA, the clocker doesn't know whether to scratch his watch or wind his ass.

Hahaha. All we really use if TF for our capping.

-Sara

I think Independence Hall has a shot.

Also Smooth like Straight to win and boxed with Ride a Comet in the Kilroy Mile

I'm hoping to beat Independence Hall off the board.
If I don't hit, I hope you do, SecondBest:ThmbUp:

Maxfield is tough, but I think he's beatable in the win slot.

Have a lot more handicapping to do in order to narrow the others, -interested in considering ways to find value in the :3: Kiss Today Goodbye but have to see how wide that last trip actually was.

:5::6::7: deserve appraisal for sure

did not like him at all, and didn't have any kind of disadvantaged 'wide' trip...

The pace in here is a bit of a danger to be on the slow side.

If no one really wants it (like the :1: or :8:), the the :7: Tizamagician will be on that same kind of slow/moderate pace, once again.

:5: Express Train and :6: Idol are going to be decent value, but there's some risk of a 'tradeoff' of being slightly pace compromised.

I'd have to guess that given the distance, and the projected pace, that Geroux will give :2: Maxfield an opportunity to be forward.

I cant find a reason to get off the Express Train other than him being the likely second choice.Ill use him with Coastal Defense and Independence Hall trying to get some value.

Maxfield may not like the surface. Lots of horses who come here don't. But, there's not much in the race.

Good value on the :5: and :6:. Was slightly worried that :2: Maxfield had a chance to contend with the :5: when they entered the stretch, but the :6: Idol ran back to his previous hype.

I'm not sure what to make of these horses.

On the one hand they are a lightly raced group that's improving and Idol seems like he genuinely wants 10F.

On the other hand a few of them still had conditions going in or won graded stakes with inflated class designations because they were made up of horses that still had conditions.

It's kind of amazing how much the game has changed even in the older horse division. Horses used to work their way through 3 ALW conditions, then try to prove themselves in legitimately tough Grade 2/3 events before trying Grade 1 events and especially before taking on a premier Grade 1 race like the Santa Anita Handicap. Many of the horses in a race like the SA Handicap used to be legitimate Grade 1 winners or multiple Grade 1 winners.

Now if you are a solid NW2 winner or occasionally even an impressive NW1 winner you can go straight in graded stake competition and be a major contender. If you are competitive there you can go straight into a top Grade 1 event. It's kind of like the entire graded stakes structure has been lowered 1-2 notches. And again, that's not on a knock on these horses. A few look like they may get very good, but qualitatively they aren't at the same level yet as years ago.

have to guess the top three finishers are all G2/G3 talents, who all are very nice horses and relatively reliable. High quality animals. Well trained. Good fundamentals.

Good for you. Glad to see you cashed

I'm trying to figure out how Idol paid $12.80. Nearly everyone I heard or talked to liked him.