Blinkers a big plus for Found My Ball

Not a whole lot in the way of year-end implications afoot on this last Saturday of spring, but there are a bunch of solid racing programs across the land. Santa Anita’s card, top to bottom, holds ample appeal, as do Belmont’s New York Stallion Stakes, which have large, playable fields. Coast to coast, here we go.

Snow Chief

Will lead with the $150,000 Snow Chief, for California-bred 3-year-olds over 1 1/8 miles on grass, because Found My Ball is the horse I like best among this trio of potential plays.

It seems fairly clear that the reason Found My Ball remains eligible for a firstlevel allowance six races into his career has much less to do with ability than the application of that ability. He popped an 84 Beyer way back in his January maiden win and didn’t disgrace himself facing open competition in the San Vicente, but has failed, really, to progress much since.

Found My Ball should have won his most recent race. He got a good trip, got on even terms with the leader in the final furlong, and hung. Similar story back on March 14, his only other turf try, which, taken with the last out, strongly suggests this horse gets over turf at least as well (I’d contend better) than he does dirt. Found My Ball strikes one as a strong candidate for blinkers – and here they are. He didn’t wear them in his company work June 5, when he went on the outside of Hockey Dad, but did working inside the same horse on June 12, and to me, it was a night-and-day difference with the way the colt went about his business.

The feeling is the equipment change will truly help, and I feel fairly confident Found My Ball will stay this nine-furlong distance. He is a large, robust specimen with a good-sized stride and his full brother Ralis could stay 1 1/4 miles on turf and nearly won the 2016 Del Mar Derby over this same 1 1/8-mile trip.

Get Serious

The Critical Way will deservedly be favored in this five-furlong turf dash, which drew a field that could easily be running for twice the $75,000 purse. He turned into a new, better model of his previous self at the end of his 2020 campaign, The Critical Way has held his own facing the cream of North America’s turf-sprint crop this year – Extravagant Kid, a Group 1 winner overseas this spring, and the stalwarts Bound for Nowhere and Imprimis. Nothing but respect for the form he’s shown all season, but how long can it last? Keep in mind this is a 7-year-old who never had hit this level before, and now he is trying to maintain that level for a sixth straight start.

I thought he was susceptible to regression at Pimlico last out, but The Critical Way ran a winning race, setting a strong pace, only to be slightly outfinished by a pace presser. A comfortable lead looks unlikely in the Get Serious, with one of The Critical Way’s main rivals Francatelli drawn on the rail, from which he will almost certainly dole out his ample early and middle speed. Further pressure is possible from the outside.

Given the likely race shape, I like Boldor to mow them down. I thought this 5-yearold would like turf when switched to it this season (his one earlier grass try is a throwout), but at Keeneland he was taken out of his best one-run-closing game by having to chase Maven, and things at Pimlico did not go his way.

Breaking from the rail at Pimlico, Boldor got shuffled back approaching the half-mile pole and stuck in a pocket around the turn as the eventual top three finishers got away from him. He came with the fastest final furlong in the field, too late, but with better luck at Monmouth can get that run started earlier and post a mild upset.

New York Stallion Stakes – filly division

Ava’s Grace takes a major class drop and figures to be a strong favorite here, but I don’t like her switching to turf. Maybe she’ll handle it, but at her likely price I’ll try to beat her.

Shaker Shack also makes her turf debut, but unlike Ava’s Grace has a pedigree strongly suggesting she is going to enjoy the surface switch. Nearly all her siblings did their best work on turf, and grandsire City Zip is the epitome of a surface-versatile stallion. This filly enters fresh with a steady work pattern, improved through the spring, and showed just enough ability to sit right off the pace and work out a nice trip.