The Baruch Handicap (Grade 2)- $200.000 Purse
SAR- For Three Year Olds and Upward
One Mile and One Sixteenth on the Inner Turf
September 6, 2021

Part of the Labor Day card at SAR will be the 17th running of The Baruch Handicap, a Grade 2 event on the inner turf course. The conditions of this race have been relatively consistent throughout its history, though it did debut at a mile and a half before changing to the current distance in 2012. Purses have run between $150.000 and $250.000 over time. Mb Stables is the only trainer to win this race, doing so in 2018 and 2019, and that streak was broken last year by Jkk Racing Stables, who won with Im Special. That gelding is now six years of age and is still listed as active even though he has not raced since January. For this race, we have eleven going to the gate and their carried weights range from 117 to 121 pounds, with most being between 117 and 119. Let’s take a look at those horses now!

#1- Plucky Flash (Rock Creek, ridden by T Gaffalione)- This is a giant step forward for this horse as he has pretty much raced in claimers exclusively after breaking his maiden, and we’re not talking high end claimers, either. Rock Creek picked him for $14.000 in May, and has run him twice. About six weeks ago, he ran in an optional claimer here and was third, but did earn a 93 SRF. Nothing wrong with testing a horse’s ability, but I wouldn’t put money on him.

#2- Black Horizon (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by D Cohen)- We haven’t seen this horse race since April, when he was a distant sixth in a SA optional claimer. At one point, this horse was running against the best, being seen in the BEL Derby before ultimately finishing second in the SAR Derby last year. But after he left the Spa, his fortunes took a turn for the worse. Maxmillion has had some time now to figure out where Black Horizon has gone wrong, and we’ll see if the old form can return here!

#3- Moonlight Special (Allinthegate, ridden by J R Velazquez)- This is a horse that knows how to find the winners circle, with six victories in fifteen starts. In January, Moonlight Special finished second in the Grade 2 San Gabriel, but that did not lead to more graded stakes participation. Instead, he was downgraded into a $27.500 ungraded stake at TUP, which he did win. He’s run in two more ungradedd stakes, with the most recent being the tougher $150.000 California Dreamin for CA-breds. He won that, and that win means he carries 120 pounds here.

#4- Mucho Baked (Spankys Barn, ridden by R Santana Jr)- With a little more luck at the wire, perhaps this five year old gelding could have a few wins this year, but as it stands, he has not won since last November. He’s been hitting the board quite well, though, and has been third in his last four races. That includes the Grade 2 Whittingham and the Grade 2 Wise Dan within his last three starts. Expect him to be a contender here, and maybe he’ll get that bit of a luck that always comes in handy but I think the third place streak continues.

#5- Through The World (La Canada Racehorses, ridden by M Franco)- We saw this one here about three weeks ago when he finished fourth in the Grade 1 Fourstardave. The trainer moved him up into that race after two third place finishes of his own in the races that came before that. He’s won twice this year, during the colder months, with the top win being the $100.000 Elusive Quality at BEL. Never seems to run a bad race, and he will be one of the horses carrying the 117 pounds.

#6- Fuji (Smokey Stover, ridden by E Jaramillo)- This gelding has won seven times during his 22 starts, with his biggest wins coming early in 2020. This year started off with him being gelded, but predominantly running in open allowances after struggling in the TAM Stakes. He’d win two of them, coming in May and July, so that earned him the right to move back up to this level, and he was third at eleven furlongs in the DMR Handicap. This distance is more to his liking, and he may want to jump out to the lead early.

#7- Dogs Noah (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by J Alvarado)- A veteran of 37 career starts that is looking to get back to his winning ways. He ran off three straight wins in claimers from December to April, and that saw him move back into the stake level, something in which he ran in with much more frequency in his younger days. To this point, that has not done well, as he has failed to hit the board in all three of those starts while finishing closer to the back than to the front. Maybe he will go back to old tactics for this one.

#8- Mr Scratch (Nakamura Stables, ridden by K Carmouche)- Mr Scratch knows how to race and he also knows how to win, doing so in seven of his 18 career starts to this point. His biggest successes come in ungraded stakes, with three wins in them. When the trainer has moved up into the graded level, which has not been all that often, his career highlight is a third place showing in the Grade 2 Twilight last year. He looked sharp in winning an open allowance here at the end of July, topping Fuji as he did, so he has certainly earned his spot here.

#9- Two In The Chamber (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by S Ryan)- The trainer will also have two in the race, and with this colt by Forty Two, it will be his graded stake debut. It may be hard to get excited about him here, since he does only have two wins in 19 career starts, and his 2021 starts don’t really get you that excited, either. The trainer sees something that warrants this move forward, so we’ll see how it goes, but this is another I could not put money on.

#10- Starship El Gran (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by A Cedillo)- Last month, this gelding made his second graded stake start, and it was a challenging one, given it was the Grade 1 Whitney. He was never a factor in the race, but his sixth place finish put him in the middle of the field and at least showed that he could hang with most in the race. That gets him this start, which is also a return to the surface that he has most of his recent experience on. He’s the better choice if you wanted to pick one from this trainer.

#11- Bubba Kush (Threshold, ridden by J L Ortiz)- Here is the old man of the group, as the eight year old gelding has made 46 starts during his career. That has helped him also having the highest total earnings of anyone here, with that being just over $800.000. Mixed in are fourteen wins, with one being the Grade 3 Canadian Turf in February, one of his four starts this year. That victory also makes him the high weight for the race, carrying 121 pounds. In May, he was second in the Forester Turf Classic, so this veteran is still getting the job done. The biggest concern is the weight he carries, and it is never ideal to start from this post. Not going to be my top pick, but I still feel he has a great chance here.

Prediction: 5-11-4-8

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES