Miller, seeking Del Mar title, may start four in Oceanside

Led by the unbeaten Arms Runner, trainer Peter Miller may have as many as four starters in Wednesday’s $100,000 Oceanside Stakes for 3-yearolds at Del Mar.

The Oceanside Stakes, at a mile on turf, is the featured race on opening day of the track’s summer meeting. Miller’s other hopefuls include All about mike, Tell Me a Story, and Vending Machine.

Arms Runner has won twice, including the Desert Code Stakes for sprinters at Santa Anita in May. This will be the longest race of his career.

“It shouldn’t be a problem,” Miller said of the distance.

Vending Machine won the minor Eddie Logan Stakes on turf at Santa Anita last December and is winless in four starts this year. The Oceanside will be the stakes debut for All about mike and Tell Me a Story.

Miller finished second in the trainers’ standings at the 2016 summer meeting with 21 wins, two fewer than leader Phil D’Amato. Miller is aiming for the title at this summer’s meeting, which runs through Sept. 4.

“It won’t be for a lack of trying,” he said.

There are six stakes ranging in value from $100,000 to potentially $300,000 in the first five days of the meeting through July 23. The Grade 2 San Diego Handicap has a purse of $200,000 that will be raised to $300,000 if Arrogate starts, as expected. Arrogate is the world’s top-rated horse with wins in the $12 million Pegasus World Cup and $10 million Dubai World Cup this year.

Miller may start El Huerfano in the San Diego “if it comes up short.”

Other candidates for the San Diego are Accelerate, Cat Burglar, Dalmore, Donworth, and Win the Space, according to Del Mar racing officials.

Eight is enough for Los Al card

Field sizes continue to be a concern at the Los Alamitos eight-day summer meeting, which ends Sunday.

Nine races were originally scheduled for Saturday’s program, but the track has carded eight, including the $200,000 Los Alamitos Derby.

During the meeting’s first week, July 6-9, fields averaged 6.97 starters per race, compared with 7.9 starters per race at last December’s meeting. The December meeting had the highest average field size since the track was expanded in early 2014 to host afternoon Thoroughbred races.

Saturday’s eight-race program drew 60 runners, or 7.5 entrants per race. Racing secretary Bob Moreno said he and his staff sought to card nine races, but an additional race would have been forced.

“We have one five-horse field, but we had decent numbers with the rest of the card,” he said. “We were better with a solid eight.”

Moreno projected that the track would run nine races on Sunday’s closing day. Entries were being compiled Thursday.

Field sizes have been an issue throughout Southern California this year. Santa Anita canceled four days of racing at its spring-summer meeting because of low numbers of entries and ran three-day weeks for the final three full weeks of June to ensure larger fields.

The Los Alamitos meeting comes at a time of year when many owners and trainers are focused on preparing horses for the Del Mar summer meeting, which begins Wednesday. Stables began shipping to Del Mar on Thursday.

Belmont, Los Al pick 4 combo

Belmont Park and Los Alamitos are teaming up to conduct a 50-cent pick four that includes two stakes on Saturday’s program.

The bet, entitled the New York-Los Alamitos Pick Four, begins with two races from Belmont Park: the $150,000 Forbidden Apple Stakes at 5:18 p.m., Eastern and a maiden race for 2-year-olds. They are the eighth and ninth races on an 11-race program.

The two races from Los Alamitos are an optional claimer for older horses and the Grade 3 Los Alamitos Derby, the sixth and seventh races on an eight-race program. Post time for the $200,000 Los Alamitos Derby is approximately 7:58 p.m. Eastern.

The takeout will be the standard California rate of 23.68 percent.

Kiss Me Now nears U.S. debut

Kiss Me Now, the winner of two Group 1 races for 3-year-old fillies in Brazil last fall, joined trainer Paulo Lobo’s California stable this year and will have her American debut at the Del Mar summer meeting.

Lobo said he is considering Kiss Me Now for the $75,000 CTT and TOC Handicap at 1 3/8 miles on turf for fillies and mares Aug. 16. Kiss Me Now has won 3 of 9 starts and has not raced since January.

By T.H. Approval, Kiss Me Now won Group 1 stakes on turf at 1 1/8 miles and 1 1/4 miles last October and November. Kiss Me Now has had a steady pattern of workouts since early June.

“She’s a filly that doesn’t need to do much in the morning,” Lobo said. “She’s a light filly. She’s not a great worker, but she should improve a lot on grass.”