Schuylerville Stakes gets another season started at Saratoga Race Course

Seventy-one is the number of stakes races that will be offered during the meeting that will run Wednesdays through Sundays and Labor Day.

The 20.8 million is the value of those stakes in dollars.

The first of those 71 stakes is carded as the ninth race on Thursday’s scheduled 10-race program. The Schuylerville Stakes is not only the traditional opening-day feature but it spotlights the emphasis the New York Racing Association places on the future stars of the sport, the 2-year-olds.

Eleven juvenile fillies have been entered in the Schuylerville that will be run for the 105th time at the historic track. The six-furlong dash is a Grade III race, with $175,000 in prize money on the line.

The MKW Racing-owned Wine On Tap has been tabbed as the 5-2 favorite. Irad Ortiz, Jr., last year’s Saratoga riding champion, will ride the daughter of the highly prolific and successful stallion Tapit for trainer Todd Pletcher out of the No. 7 stall in the starting gate.

The grey or roan filly, who cost $600,000 at last year’s Keeneland Sale, comes to the Spa fresh from a three-length win in a maiden race at Belmont last month.

Saratoga Secret, the second choice on the morning line at 4-1, has more local connections going for her than just her name. Her sire, Arrogate, won Saratoga’s signature race, the Grade I Travers, in 2016 on his way to enshrinement in the National Museum of Racing’s Hall of Fame on Union Avenue.

Saratoga Secret’s owners, BC Stables, LLC, were the successful bidders at $200,000 for the filly at last year’s Saratoga Select Yearling Sale run by Fasig-Tipton at their East Avenue venue.

…