Betting the Eddie Read Stakes on a Budget

Midnight Storm returns to the site of his greatest victory in Saturday's Eddie Read at Del Mar. (Photo by Eclipse Sportswire)
This weekend Del Mar Thoroughbred Club celebrates the opening of its annual summer meet, one of the true gems on the North American calendar. The Grade I Eddie Read Stakes makes a splash on the first weekend of racing where the turf meets the surf. Finnegan’s Wake, one of the nation’s hottest grass horses this year, headlines the field and faces six foes in the 1 1/8-mile test on Del Mar’s turf course.
Finnegans Wake (No. 7)has a penchant for closing deep off the pace and this race shapes up well for this preferred running style. Additionally, he has raced and hung with a class definitively above the rest of the field, coming off three straight strong efforts in Grade I races, including a win. But note the emphasis on the past tense there. I think this horse is vulnerable and may be on the downswing, with his best races behind him. Giving up four pounds to the field could also show late as he tries to show his signature kick down the stretch. I’m always looking to bet a horse on the rise.
Midnight Storm (3) fits the bill. He is lightly raced and has won twice already on the Del Mar grass surface. He was beaten by just a half-length last out in the Shoemaker Mile at Santa Anita and seems to be coming into his own in his 4-year-old campaign. By Pioneer of the Nile, I think he has the class to hang with a horse as tested as Finnegan’s Wake. And distance should not be an issue, given his win at this distance in the 2014 Del Mar Derby.  If jockey Tyler Baze can rate him just off the pace, likely to be set by Big Cazanova, I think he throttles the field here.
Power Ped (4) and Twentytwentyvision (1) are both viable horses worth a look here, if you’re looking to cash an exotic. Power Ped comes off a five-month layoff and Gary Stevens gets the mount. He’s run some big races and, while he doesn’t always win, he has a knack for finishing a game second or third, while rarely posting a dud. He’s an effort horse.
Twentytwentyvision makes a jump up from allowance-level races. His last effort at Santa Anita was above average, in which he finished second, while besting the talented Global View. Twentytwentyvision could certainly make his way into the mix here.
Finnegan’s Wake could prove me wrong, but I am going to be all over Midnight Storm. Best of luck!
Selections: #3 Midnight Storm, #7 Finnegans Wake, #4 Power Ped, #1 Twentytwentyvision
Budget betting strategies:
$20 win: 3
OR
$3 exacta: 3,7/1,3,4,7
$400,000 Eddie Read Stakes
Saturday, Del Mar, Race 4 at 6:42 p.m. ET
1 1/8 miles, turf, 3-year-olds and older

PP

Horse

Jockey

Trainer

ML Odds

Owner

1

Twentytwentyvision

Flavien Prat

Richard Mandella

6-1

Ellen and Peter O. Johnson, Sr.

2

Gabriel Charles

Mike Smith

Jeff Mullins

5-1

Britt or House

3

Midnight Storm

Tyler Baze

Phil D'Amato

8-5

A Venneri Racing or Dye or Little Red Feather Racing

4

Power Ped

Gary Stevens

Neil Drysdale

8-1

Stepaside Farms

5

Big Cazanova

James Graham

Peter Miller

12-1

Dona Licha or Barber or Wachtel Stable, Et Al

6

Maltes

Martin Garcia

Darrell Vienna

15-1

Red Baron’s Barn or Rancho Temescal

7

Finnegans Wake

Victor Espinoza

Peter Miller

2-1

Donegal Racing or Rockingham Ranch