SANTA ANITA STABLE NOTES

By Ed Golden —-

• KING RICHARD ON A ROLL AT SANTA ANITA 24/7
• ELLIOTT TO RECEIVE WOOLF AWARD ON SUNDAY
• UNIQUE BELLA BREEZES FOR SANTA ANITA OAKS
• GORMLEY, ROYAL MO SANTA ANITA DERBY BOUND?
• SINGLE PICK SIX JACKPOT CARRYOVER AT $317,374

BALTAS HAS NEAR-PERFECT ENTRY RECORD

A day without Baltas at Santa Anita is like a day without sunshine, and while there has been more than enough erratic weather during the 12-week old Winter Meet, trainer Richard Baltas has been a constant, a racing secretary’s dream with 125 starters, second only to three-time Santa Anita training king Doug O’Neill’s 150.

Baltas couldn’t recall the number of days he did not have a starter from his barn of 83 head based at Santa Anita and San Luis Rey Downs, but added with a laugh, “There haven’t been many, maybe a couple. That’s what I’m here for, and it’s hard to win at 18 percent when you run 125 horses.

“Yesterday I thought we’d win two but we only won one, and we had one second and one third, so all three horses hit the board.”

The fact is, Baltas has missed only one of 45 racing days without entering a horse this meet, that being Feb. 11.

Baltas, who turns 56 on May 30, could add to that ever-expanding number with at least two more starters next weekend, Inordinate in Saturday’s San Luis Rey Stakes for older horses at a mile and a half on turf and Kiss At Midnight in Sunday’s $100,000 Dream of Summer Stakes, part of the Golden State Series for California-bred or sired horses, this for older fillies and mares at a mile on dirt.
Inordinate, a five-year-old full horse by Harlan’s Holiday, ran second in an overnight race at a mile and a quarter on turf Feb. 25 in his only start for Baltas, who obtained the Kentucky-bred bay out of the November Fasig-Tipton Sale. Bred by Juddmonte Farms and previously owned by the internationally acclaimed Thoroughbred operation, Inordinate had been trained by 2016 Eclipse Award winner Chad Brown.
“He ran well for us first time out and I believe he probably needed the race (his first since last Aug. 27),” Baltas said. “He’s come back to train well He worked (six furlongs) in 1:12 and two on March 14. It looks like he might have a chance in the race. We’ll see.”

Inordinate will be ridden by resurgent Corey Nakatani, who has enjoyed noticeable success with Baltas, winning nine times in 26 tries for the trainer.

Kiss At Midnight was claimed for $25,000 in April of 2015 and has been second in four Cal-bred stakes, including last year’s Dream of Summer. The five-year-old Decarchy mare has earned $357,793, most of that under the direction of Baltas.

Baltas, a native of Gary, Indiana, hometown of Tony Zale, the great middleweight champion of the 1950s, has had great success with claims. He posted his first stakes win with $32,000 claim Freedom Crest in the Grade II San Pasqual Handicap in 2001 and also the Grade II, $488,000 Goodwood Breeders’ Cup Handicap in which Freedom Crest defeated 2000 Horse of the Year Tiznow. On the bargain list as well is Big Macher, who was taken for $20,000 in 2013 and gave Baltas his first Grade I win, in the Bing Crosby Stakes in 2014. Big Macher was on the work tab Sunday morning, going three furlongs in 36.80.

Baltas, who now resides in Los Alamitos with his wife, Debby, moved to Huntington Beach when he was nine, graduated from MarinaHigh School in 1979, attended the races with his late father, Gus and fell in love with the sport.

“I started going to the races when I was 13 with my father,” Baltas said. “My mother was at the races the other day. She’s 88. My Dad died when he was 74.”

At 21 and wanting to break into the game, in 1983 Baltas moved to the heart of the Blue Grass country in Lexington, Kentucky, attended the Kentucky Equine Institute and began working at Spendthrift Farm where resided Triple Crown winners Seattle Slew and Affirmed.

He rubbed yearlings and worked as a groom, learning the business “from the ground up,” through trainers such as Tom Skiffington, Eric Guillot, Barry Abrams, Craig Dollase and Richard Mandella.
Baltas took out his trainer’s license in 1991 and won his first race at HollywoodPark with Latchburn.
His wife, Debby, the “Julia Child of Racing Repast,” calls the shots at the track kitchen on Santa Anita’s backstretch. Her family ran the track kitchen at HollywoodPark until the track closed in December of 2013.

Debby’s Mom, Norma, serves hungry patrons at the Fresh Gourmet, “a great stop for lunch or dinner” on 2004 Huntington Drive in San Marino, a few furlongs from Santa Anita.

The San Luis Rey is expected to draw a full field. Probables include Ashleyluvssugar, Gary Stevens; Buster Douglas, Santiago Gonzalez; Flamboyant, Brice Blanc; Inordinate, Corey Nakatani; Itsinthepost, Tyler Baze; Liam the Charmer, Victor Espinoza; Papacoolpapacool, no rider; Site Read, Stewart Elliott; Some in Tieme, Tiago Pereira; Syntax, no rider; Texas Ryano, Joe Talamo; Up With the Birds, no rider; and Wanstead Gardens, no rider.

Liam the Charmer and Site Read worked in company for Michael McCarthy Sunday, going five furlongs in 1:00.60 and 1:00.80, respectively. Asked how he liked the works, the on-the-run trainer said, “Loved ‘em.”

ELLIOTT TO RECEIVE WOOLF AWARD NEXT SUNDAY

Veteran jockey Stewart Elliott, who was named winner of the 2017 George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award on Feb. 24, will receive the prestigious trophy, which depicts the legendary George (The Iceman) Woolf, in a Winner’s Circle ceremony between races at Santa Anita next Sunday, March 26.

Established to honor the memory of Woolf, who died following a spill on Santa Anita’s Club House turn on Jan. 3, 1946, the Woolf Award was first presented by Santa Anita in 1950 and this year marks the 68th anniversary of the honor that can only be won once.

Voted on by jockeys nationwide, the Woolf Award seeks to recognize riders who have not only achieved a high degree of success in the saddle, but who have conducted both their personal and professional lives in a manner that brings credit to the sport of Thoroughbred racing and to them personally.

Born in Toronto on March 11, 1965, Elliot celebrated his 52nd birthday on Santa Anita Handicap Day, March 11. A strong finisher who is also an outstanding judge of pace, Elliott, best known for capturing the 2004 Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes with Smarty Jones, has now amassed more than 4,700 career wins.

One of five 2017 Woolf finalists, Elliott outpolled contemporaries Kerwin Clark, Julien Leparoux, Glen Murphy and Scott Stevens.

FINISH LINES: Las Virgenes winner Unique Bella, prepping for the Grade I Santa Anita Oaks on April 8, worked six furlongs for Jerry Hollendorfer Saturday in a bullet 1:11.20, fastest of 10 drills at the distance, the average time of which was 1:13.96. Unbeaten California Cup Oaks winner Sircat Sally also worked for Hollendorfer, going four furlongs in 48.40 . . . John Shirreffs reports Gormley and Royal Mo came out of their races in the San Felipe Stakes and Rebel Stakes in good order despite finishing unplaced and are being considered for the $1 million Santa Anita Derby on April 8 . . . There is a single ticket Pick Six Jackpot carryover today of$317,374.27 . . . Santa Anita presents a Winner’s Circle BBQ Championship on Saturday, April 1. Patrons can taste delicious samplings from masters of BBQ and enjoy a day of Thoroughbred racing. Special packages are available at santaanita.com/events . . . The annual Santa Anita Derby Day 5K Run and Walk takes place on Saturday, April 8. Visit derbyday5K.com or call 760-434 5255 for further information . . . According to Santa Anita statistician Jason Hom, favorites overall are winning at a 36.55 clip at the Winter Meet (144 out of 394) and at an even greater rate on dirt, 38.46 (115 of 299). The number drops to 30.53 on turf (29 of 95). Odds-on favorites are winning at 62.03 percent (49 of 79); in the money favorites at 72.08 (284 of 394); and in the money odds-on favorites at 94.94 percent (75 of 79) . . . Agent Nelson Arroyo has brother Norberto Jr. booked to ride Palos Verdes winner St. Joe Bay for leading trainer Peter Miller in the $2 million Golden Shaheen in Dubai next Saturday . . . Barretts Sales at Del Mar will be conducting their Select 2-year-old in Training Sale on Wednesday, March 29. Their training track preview will be on Monday, March 27, beginning at 10 a.m. The sale catalogue is available in the Santa Anita Racing Office and the complete catalogue is available on line as well at info@barretts.com. . .Condolences to the family of longtime Thoroughbred owner Nick Barron, who passed away earlier this month at age 85. The owner of Hallett Boats, now Barron Boats, Inc., Barron and his wife Shirley resided in nearby Glendora. Services were held this past Wednesday at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Monrovia.

SANTA ANITA STATISTICS

(Current Through Saturday, March 18)
Jockey Mts 1st 2nd 3rd Win% ITM% Money Won

Flavien Prat 228 52 38 43 23% 58% $3,285,875
Tyler Baze 247 43 46 30 17% 48% $2,375,552
Kent Desormeaux 141 30 17 17 21% 45% $1,706,151
Joseph Talamo 159 24 16 21 15% 38% $822,023
Rafael Bejarano 138 23 23 23 17% 50% $1,656,326
Norberto Arroyo, Jr. 102 19 11 10 19% 39% $841,556
Mike Smith 56 18 6 14 32% 68% $1,871,827
Stewart Elliott 154 17 16 24 11% 37% $827,993
Martin Pedroza 116 15 21 23 13% 51% $699,512
Santiago Gonzalez 131 13 22 17 10% 40% $675,443
Corey Nakatani 76 13 8 9 17% 39% $806,207
Tiago Pereira 107 12 11 17 11% 37% $415,991
Edwin Maldonado 77 12 9 11 16% 42% $372,616
Luis Contreras 89 10 10 23 11% 48% $487,537
Victor Espinoza 62 9 15 7 15% 50% $755,487
Jamie Theriot 74 9 7 5 12% 28% $440,570

Trainer Mts 1st 2nd 3rd Win% ITM% Money Won

Peter Miller 98 28 22 10 29% 61% $1,378,586
Jerry Hollendorfer 123 26 19 22 21% 54% $1,701,389
Richard Baltas 125 22 22 20 18% 51% $1,261,832
Doug O’Neill 150 18 29 21 12% 45% $1,641,356
Philip D’Amato 89 18 12 13 20% 48% $1,191,840
Bob Baffert 60 14 8 10 23% 53% $1,543,516
Peter Eurton 58 11 6 7 19% 41% $600,402
William Spawr 32 11 4 5 34% 63% $347,000
John Sadler 60 10 12 12 17% 57% $625,380
Vladimir Cerin 51 9 12 9 18% 59% $491,664
Mark Glatt 76 9 11 11 12% 41% $460,215
J. Keith Desormeaux 44 9 4 6 20% 43% $509,505
Steven Miyadi 60 8 16 6 13% 50% $396,906
James Cassidy 45 8 8 3 18% 42% $427,091
-30-

About Us
Santa Anita Park is a Stronach Group company, North America’s leading Thoroughbred racetrack owner/operator. The Stronach Group racetracks include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park & Casino, Golden Gate Fields, Portland Meadows, Laurel Park and Pimlico Race Course, home of the world-famous Preakness. The company owns and operates the Palm Meadows Training Center in Florida, and is one of North America’s top race horse breeders through its award-winning Adena Springs operation The Stronach Group is one of the world’s largest suppliers of pari-mutuel wagering systems, technologies and services. Its companies include AmTote, a global leader in wagering technology; Xpressbet, an Internet and telephone account wagering service; and Monarch Content Management, which acts as a simulcast purchase and sales agent of horseracing content for numerous North American racetracks and wagering outlets. The Stronach Group is North America’s premier supplier of virtual online horseracing games, as well as a leading producer of social media content for the horseracing industry.