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Tom’s d’Etat heads select field in the Whitney Stakes

Tom’s d’Etat heads select field in the Whitney Stakes 
By the NY Hot List // Thursday, July 30

The Travers Stakes may be Saratoga’s most famous race but the Whitney Stakes is definitely a close second. Each year, the Whitney brings a collection of the best older horses in training to the Spa for a showdown at 1 1/8 miles. Sometimes an older and wiser winner of the previous year’s Travers shows up. This year’s $750,000 Whitney checks all of those boxes. The winner of the 2019 Travers, Code of Honor, will be on hand in a small field of five that includes five millionaires, but, reflective of the quality among that quintet, Code of Honor probably will not be favored. That role should go to Tom’s d’Etat, who has won his last four starts and comes off a victory in the Grade 2 Stephen Foster at Churchill Downs in which he just missed a track record by .02 of a second.

Here’s the Hot List picks for the Whitney Stakes.

The $750,000 Whitney Stakes, Saratoga, Saturday, Race 9.

(5) Tom’s d’Etat comes to Saratoga on a four-race winning streak for trainer Al Stall Jr. who won this race with Blame back in 2010 and, actually, Tom’s d’Etat won three of the same races that Blame won heading to the Whitney. Tom’s d’Etat took control of the Stephen Foster (G2) earlier than usual and won easily. That versatility should serve him well against this contentious field. (3) Code of Honor returns to Saratoga where he is unbeaten in two starts including last year’s Travers (G1). In the Met Mile (G1) he faced a pace scenario that was not ideal for his late running style. Trainer Shug McGaughey has been sending horses to the track ready to win and the nine-furlongs suits Code of Honor well. (2) Improbable put all the pieces together to get a Grade 1 win in the Gold Cup at Santa Anita. This is a much tougher field for the Bob Baffert runner. (1) By My Standards is having a great year but the pace dynamics do not seem to be in his favor here. He will face plenty of pressure if he goes early or if he stalks.

The Whitney is part of the Special Saturday Pick 3 from the New York Hot List team. That Pick 3 and analysis of the full card is available free of charge at this website.