Ms Bad Behavior © Benoit Photo

BALTAS HAS TWO TO TANGO IN DESI ARNAZ STAKES

Mathematically, trainer Richard Baltas has a 40 percent chance of winning Saturday’s $100,000 Desi Arnaz Stakes. He’ll saddle Ms Bad Behavior and Secret Spice in the seven-furlong sprint for two-year-old fillies in a field reduced to five.

Trainer Brian Koriner said Friday morning that Steph Being Steph, who drew the rail post, would be scratched.

Check the Beyer speed figure numbers and Ms Bad Behavior, a Canadian-bred daughter of Blame, has the highest in a group with limited racing experience – a 79 achieved in a third-start, maiden-breaking win at Santa Anita on October 15. The last-out score was by 3 ¼ lengths going 6 ½ furlongs.

The math, and the speed figure numbers, will be validated or invalidated when the Desi Arnaz, formerly the Moccasin Stakes, is run for the third time at Del Mar as the fifth on a nine-race card that starts at 12:30 p.m.

“She’s had some time between races, she’s trained very well and the last couple of works have been very good, so this seemed like a logical spot for her,” Baltas said of Ms Bad Behavior. The filly, owned by Sayjay Racing LLC and partners, made the first two starts of her career at the summer meeting here, finishing third at five furlongs on August 12 and second, beaten 2 ½-lengths by Alluring Star on September 3.

Secret Spice, a Kentucky-bred daughter of Discreet Cat owned by Little Red Feather Racing, also debuted here in the summer. A fourth in that 5 ½-furlong race was followed by a win at 5 ½-furlongs at Santa Anita before being stretched out to six furlongs in the $70,000-added Anoakia Stakes at Santa Anita on October 22.

Secret Spice finished fourth, beaten 5 ½-lengths by Artistic Diva.

“She missed the break last time,” Baltas said. “That race might have stacked up a little tougher than this one so we’ll see what happens.”

The extra distance of the Arnaz shouldn’t affect either of his horses, Baltas said.

“(Ms Bad Behavior) just won at 6 ½ (furlongs) going away, so it shouldn’t be a problem,” Baltas said. “If they were going around two turns, it might be a question, but not around one.”

The field from the rail: Ms Bad Behavior (Tiago Pereira, 5-2), Midnight Bisou (Rafael Bejarano, 3-1), Smiling Tigress (Tyler Baze, 10-1), Secret Spice (Corey Nakatani, 6-1) and Dream Tree (Drayden Van Dyke, 2-1).

EDWARDS GOING LEFT FAVORED IN SUNDAY’S CARY GRANT

John Sadler-trained Edwards Going Left, a gelded son of Midnight Lute, was established as the 3-1 favorite Friday on oddsmaker Russ Hudak’s morning line for Sunday’s $100,000 Cary Grant Stakes.

The seven-furlong sprint for 3-year-old California breds, drew a field of 10 and will go as the eighth on a nine-race card starting at 12:30.

Edwards Going Left has a record of five wins from eight starts in a career that commenced in February. He was third, beaten two lengths by Mr Hinx, in the Real Good Deal Stakes on July 28 and won an optional claimer on August 19 in two starts during the summer meeting here.

Owned by Hronis Racing LLC, Edwards Going Left had a bullet workout at Santa Anita before an optional claiming victory there on October 22 and has two more “best-at-the-distance” works since.

The field from the rail: : Love My Bud (Santiago Gonzalez, 20-1), Solid Wager (Victor Espinoza, 7-2), Prime Issue (Flavien Prat, 10-1), Green With Eddie (Drayden Van Dyke, 15-1), Gold Rush Dancer (Corey Nakatani, 9-2), Jimmy Bouncer (Martin Pedroza, 6-1), Edwards Going Left (Tyler Baze, 3-1), California Diamond (Kent Desormeaux, 15-1), Smokey Image (Gary Stevens, 8-1) and Tribal Storm (Rafael Bejarano, 6-1).

IF WE’D ONLY KNOWN DEPARTMENT

The order of finish of Friday’s seventh race was right there in the program.

1 – Ike Walker, 2—Stormin Monarcho, 3 – El Huerfano, 4 – Avanti Bello, 5 – Mr. Shook and 6 – Gonna Fly Now.

Certainly not unprecedented. Definitely a racing rarity.

The numbers were jumbled through better than three quarters of the one-mile allowance before aligning in order under the wire as Rafael Bejarano, Tyler Baze and Flavien Prat hit the board with their mounts and apprentice Evin Roman, Drayden Van Dyke and Kent Desormeaux followed.

Ike Walker paid $9.60 to win, Stormin Monarcho $5.80 to place and El Huerfano $2.20 to show. The $1 exacta (1-2) returned $33.20, the fifty-cent 1-2-3 trifecta $33.40 and the $1 superfecta, as easy as 1-2-3-4 returned $122.10.

CLOSERS – Notable Friday morning workouts at Santa Anita: Masochistic (4f, :47 flat), Mrs McDougal (4f, :50.60) … Rafael Bejarano and Tyler Baze had two wins apiece on the Thursday card, but Flavien Prat’s win in the nightcap enabled him to pad his lead to five (12-7) in the jockey standings over Kent Desormeaux and apprentice Evin Roman. Desormeaux had one win on Thursday. A win for Jerry Hollendorfer in Thursday’s seventh race cut Peter Miller’s advantage in the trainer standings to 10-7.

DEL MAR STATISTICS

Jockey Standings

(Current Through Thursday, November 16, 2017 Inclusive)

Trainer Standings

(Current Through Thursday, November 16, 2017 Inclusive)

Winning Favorites Report

(Current Through Thursday, November 16, 2017 Inclusive)

Winning favorites -- 32 out of 82 -- 39.02%

Winning favorites on dirt -- 15 out of 46 -- 32.61%

Winning favorites on turf -- 17 out of 36 -- 47.22%

Winning odds-on favorites -- 0 out of 3 -- 0.00%

In-the-Money favorites -- 56 out of 82 -- 68.29%

In-the-Money odds-on favorites -- 2 out of 3 -- 66.67%