Cover photo by NYRA/Adam Coglianese.

In Spa Selections, Saratoga correspondent Joseph Aiello provides Saratoga picks for a handful of key races at Saratoga, including all of the exciting stakes action!

Follow along all meet with all the exciting action (and good betting opportunities)!

Check out our other handicapping here!

Race 7 – Grade II Lake Placid Stakes

1. #1 Play With Fire (2-1) – Has a bit more upside than the others here, and could be a winner if she runs back to her last race or gets some pace to aim at

2. #6 Reining Flowers (4-1) – Ran well in her step up into graded company last time in the Lake George, but still needs to finish stronger to have winning chances

3. #2 Eponine (7-2) – In her first try in North America, this filly gets Irad Ortiz and compares well with this group which lacks a true stand out

4. #5 Scarlet Sands (10-1) – Could grab the lead here against a field that lacks speed, but has also come from mid pack to win but needs to improve in the step up in class

Race 8 – Alw 95000n1x

1. #2 Gallant Greta (7-2) – Gets Flavian Prat and has been the most consistent in this field on turf, hitting the board in all four tries on this surface

2. #10 Summer Whirl (5-1) – Gets back to grass after being bet to favorite in back to back tries and should run better with the cut back in distance

3. #12 Tongue Twister (4-1) – Has been in the mix in her races this year, and can be a factor despite the tougher post with a late finish if there is a quicker pace

4. #6 Dividend Recap (8-1) – Has a bit more upside than Sweet Anniversary despite the step up from maiden claiming with strong connections here

Race 9 – Grade I Personal Ensign Stakes

1. #6 Leslie’s Rose (9-2) – Not a threat on a wet track, but despite being no match for Thorpedo Anna last year, this filly has improved and could be sitting on a big effort

2. #7 Thorpedo Anna (6-5) – With her spotless record at nine furlongs, this one remains the one to beat if she runs her best, but the pace scenario may favor others

3. #3 Raging Sea (5-1) – Bested Thorpedo Anna three months ago, but hasn’t been sharp since even if she has winning chances here if the pace is as quick as it appears

4. #4 Dorth Vader (6-1) – Ran huge in the Ogden Phipps in early June, but still might be a slight step below the top contenders on a dry track

Race 10 – Grade I H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes

1. #5 Verifire (4-1) – Undefeated in three tries for Brad Cox and hopefully is slightly better value than this as he faces his stablemate who is strong at sprint distances

2. #1 Patch Adams (3-1) – The most likely winner especially if the track is softer, as this colt by Into Mischief has been incredibly impressive going one turn

3. #2 Midland Money (8-1) – The other Baffert runner has been very impressive in his two sprint tries, and has the early speed to make things difficult for this group

4. #3 Barnes (9-2) – Disappointed in his last two, but faced a better horse in Journalism and may just need the distance cut back to get back to winning

Race 11 – Grade I Ballerina Stakes

1. #5 Claret Beret (6-1) – Nearly got up to beat Vahva last time out at this distance, and has been her best at seven furlongs plus picks up Irad Ortiz here

2. #7 Scylla (5-2) – The winner based on her class, but hasn’t won in over a year and seems to prefer other distances to this

3. #8 My Mane Squeeze (5-1) – This New York bred has been competitive when stepping up, and despite being a notch below, she can hit the board in good form

4. #1 Mystic Lake (10-1) – Has kept good company and has a solid record at this distance with the chance to have the early lead but needs to fight off Hope Road

Race 12 – Grade I Forego Stakes

1. #4 Book’em Danno (8-5) – Has been incredibly sharp recently and wins if he runs his best from mid pack but certainly faces a tough group where many can contend

2. #1 Most Wanted (5-1) – May prefer the cut back to seven furlongs even more than his stablemate Bishops Bay and should be near the lead early

3. #7 Mullikin (7-2) – Despite maybe being a step below his form from last year, this horse is still too sharp to ignore and may enjoy the return to seven furlongs

4. #6 Crazy Mason (10-1) – Can consider Extra Anejo as another longshot who loves the distance, but this colt should be charging late and would benefit from a quick pace

Race 13 – 156th Grade I Travers Stakes

1. #4 Sovereignty (2-5) – Toppling the best three year old contenders in his path since the spring, this colt by Into Mischief faces the smallest Travers field since 1994, and appears to be the best at this distance with only Magnitude showing the speed to give him trouble but it may not be enough if Bracket Buster presses him and he runs close to his Belmont win two months ago

2. #1 Magnitude (2-1) – After a mostly inauspicious start to his career, this Asmussen trainee by Not This Time has put forth two eye-popping gate to wire wins with a long layoff from a bone chip that kept him off the Derby trail and appears to be the clear challenger to Sovereignty with real winning chances if he can get the distance and is able to control the pace from the jump

3. #3 Strategic Focus (6-1) – Entering into a Travers that has eluded him, trainer Chad Brown brings this colt by Gun Runner who he says has lost interest in his past races when grabbing the lead, and now adds blinkers but still would need to improve and show that he can get the distance against two more experienced colts who have shown better top end efforts

4. #5 McAfee (20-1) – A clear step below the top contenders, this colt has at least kept good company since the spring and may be one that prefers more distance, but hasn’t shown a strong enough closing kick to suggest that he will be able to take advantage of a quicker pace even in this smaller field

Race 14 – MC 50000

1. #1 Dancin Jane (5-2) – Hopefully is a bit better value than this, but has been the most competitive of the bunch and keeps Irad Ortiz in the irons here

2. #3 Sky Low Low (12-1) – First time lasix after her debut, and despite the longer layoff, she could improve here on the class drop

3. #9 Catholic Edition (5-1) – Adds blinkers for Linda Rice and Jose Ortiz, and gets back to a slightly better distance than the nine furlong try last time

4. #10 Rad Llama (3-1) – Can consider Argentiera who has been improving and gets a jockey change, but this one drops in class which may be enough to step forward

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