Amsterdam Is Place to Be

This is the third of four 4 p.m. posts, but it might be worth showing up early at Del Mar today because Saratoga’s feature, the $125,000 Amsterdam, is a quality sprint. The Grade II attracted eight 3-year-olds, five coming off victories. Two others were second in their most recent starts. Only Trailthefox, the California invader, was off the board in his previous race. He finished fifth in the Lazaro Barrera on May 28 at Hollywood Park. The likely favorite in the Amsterdam is City Zip, who has never lost at Saratoga. The Carson City colt, trained by Linda Rice, won the Sanford Stakes, Saratoga Special and Hopeful Stakes last year at the track. In the Hopeful, he finished in a dead heat, with eventual Breeders’ Cup Juvenile champion Macho Uno a neck back in third. The other sophomores fresh off victories are Scorpion, who won an allowance at Belmont Park on July 4, Smile My Lord, who won the Raise A Cup at Delaware Park, Speightstown, who has won his last three at Woodbine, and Snow Ridge, who won an allowance race at Churchill Downs on June 30.

Race of the day: The main event at Del Mar is the $75,000 Honey Fox Handicap, an 11-furlong turf race for fillies and mares. Keemoon, the 124-pound highweight and 7-5 morning-line favorite, is the defending champion in the race and she will have seven opponents. Let’s hope she fares better than Alvo Certo. The winner of last year’s Escondido Handicap, he failed in his attempt to win that race for a second consecutive time on Wednesday. He finished last in the field of seven.

Who’s hot: Caesar Dominguez. The trainer won two races Wednesday, taking the second with 4-1 longshot Dena’s Diamond and coming right back with Gold Fevers Gift at $52 in the third. The victories came on Dominguez’s 52nd birthday.

Who’s not: Piantao. A gelded son of Slew O’Gold, he hasn’t exactly distinguished himself in his five starts for two different trainers. He has finished in front of a total of five horses and has been beaten a combined 94 3/4 lengths. He’ll take some more punishment in today’s second race at Del Mar; just wondering why he’s not yet running against $8,000 stock on the county fair circuit.

Exotically speaking: We’ll play an early pick three singling Jaklin’s Traveler in the first, using Harbour Beach, Cabreo and Music Daze in the second and My Diamond, Grazie Papa and Accell in the third.