Fire up the Grill and the Wagering Account

Summer racing unofficially starts Memorial Day weekend, and Saturday's varied stakes menu offers horseplayers ample opportunities to stick their toes in the water. 

Belmont Park and Monmouth Park offer a cross-country pick five that includes three stakes: The Salvator Mile (G3) and Monmouth Stakes (G2T) are legs A and C from the Jersey Shore, while the $100,000 Paradise Creek for 3-year-old turf runners is leg D from Belmont.

Santa Anita Park puts on three graded stakes, highlighted by the Charles Whittingham (G2T) on grass and the Triple Bend (G2) on the main track.

Salvator Mile (Mth, race 9, 4:31 ET): There's no shortage of speed in this two-turn mile, as Diamond King (3) comes off a prolonged battle up front when second in the Charles Town Classic (G2). He breaks inside Jeezeum Jim (5), who has led early in 11 of his past 12 starts, and California Night (9), who was won three of four starts this year in wire-to-wire fashion.

We're thinking Diamond King is a bounce candidate coming off a lifetime best.

The potential beneficiaries of a hot pace would be Sunny Ridge (2), third in this race last year as the 7-5 favorite, and Bal Harbour (8), who has been freshened since mid-winter and has won twice previously when brought back from layoffs.

Oddly enough, Sunny Ridge (2015) and Bal Harbour (2017) both won the Sapling over this track earlier in their careers.

Hoffenheim (6) is third off the bench and rates a look at double-digit odds.

A - 2, 8

B - 3

C - 6

Monmouth (Mth, race 11, 5:32 ET): If the going is firm, that plays to the strength of Almanaar (2) and Synchrony (7).

Almanaar, one of two entered by Chad Brown along with 12-time runner-up Projected (8), hasn't been on firm ground since a tough-trip second in the Arlington Million (G1T); he has won five of 10 starts when it's firm, but is 0-for-7 when it isn't.

Synchrony's 6-for-9 slate on firm turf includes wins in the Oceanport (G3T) and Red Bank (G3T) at Monmouth last year. On non-firm footing he is 0-for-5.

Up the Ante (4) looms a potential spoiler if allowed to control the pace, as he did wiring the Manila at age 3. He returns four weeks after being shuffled back and rallying for second in an optional claimer in his 4-year-old debut.

A - 2, 7

B - 4, 8

Paradise Creek (Bel, race 9, 5:51 ET): Anxious to see what Chad Brown's Fog of War (2) is capable of as he runs for the first time since racing greenly through the stretch but still beating eventual Preakness (G1) winner War of Will under confident handling in the Summer (G1T). Prior to that, the War Front  colt was a debut winner at Saratoga Race Course over Current, who subsequently took the Bourbon (G3T).

Mucho (7), beaten less than a length as the favorite in the Hopeful (G1) before going to the sidelines, switches to turf for his third start of the year after coming up empty in the Bay Shore (G3). He has two grass-winning siblings, named Width and Length.

Strike Silver (1), the only turf stakes winner besides Fog of War, gets a switch to reigning Eclipse Award winner Irad Ortiz Jr. following a wide trip in the Palisades Turf Sprint, which was his first outing since being steadied and lacking room in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint.

Pulsate (5) hasn't been on grass since his debut (without Lasix) last fall, and comes off two hard-fought wins over maiden and first-level allowance foes.

A - 2, 7

B - 1, 5

Charles Whittingham (SA, race 7, 4:03 PT): While it's not usually advisable to back older horses making their stakes debut at the grade 2 level, especially those who have never been the distance, United (5) may prove a worthwhile exception.

This is an intriguing spot for the 4-year-old by Giant's Causeway, who was confidently handled winning his first-level allowance condition second time off a layoff and trainer change to Dick Mandella. He then found himself behind a wall of horses turning for home and galloped out strongly past the wire when raised to the two-other-than condition three weeks ago.

Meanwhile, the logical contenders seem vulnerable. The 5-2 favorite, Marckie's Water (3), has notched just one career stakes win on turf—the 2017 Snow Chief against fellow California-breds. None of the next three choices on the morning line, Prime Attraction (1), Tizzarunner (6), or Ashleyluvssugar (7), have won at all the past two seasons. Ashleyluvssugar captured this race in 2015 and took it again in 2017, but the grizzled 8-year-old gelding is 0-for-11 since then.

A - 5

B - 3, 7

Triple Bend (SA, race 8, 4:33 PT): American Anthem (1) has won four of five starts at the Triple Bend's seven furlongs including three graded stakes. The Bob Baffert-trained son of Bodemeister  figures to be tighter second time back from an extended absence, after surrendering a clear lead through the late stages of a high-end optional claimer at a mile.

The rest are a combined 0-for-8 at the trip, but Baffert may have the most viable threat in Nero (5), who comes off a sharp score over hard-knocking veteran El Huerfano, who has banked over $500,000.

I'm playing against Cistron (2) and The Hardest Way (7), who each come off lengthy victories in April. The former took advantage of a very favorable pace setup taking the Kona Gold (G2) on an uncontested lead, while the latter looms a likely bounce stretching past six furlongs after a lifetime peak figure first out in well over a year.

Law Abidin Citizen (3) is a potential price play. He has beaten Cistron twice on turf, and showed some ability on the main track earlier in his career.

A - 1

B - 3, 5