Exacta box of the week: Saratoga race 12 for Saturday, July 27

Exacta Box of the day for Saratoga

This Saturday at Saratoga is a loaded card headlined by three graded races – the Jim Dandy Stakes (G2), Alfred G. Vanderbilt Handicap (G1) and Bowling Green Stakes (G2). If you make it through the card with some money still in your pocket, make sure you save some money for a bet in the Saratoga’s Saturday finale in Race 12 – a non-winners of two claiming race that is nevertheless one of the most bet-able races on the card. Race 12 will feature a full field of 12 horses, which will create some nice prices on some very live horses with good chances at good odds in a wide open race. Here’s four horses to play in your Race 12 exactas and trifectas.

SARATOGA RACE 12 EXOTICS PICKS:

MY MACHO (#4) (5-1) is one of two obvious horses in this field along with Surge Pricing. Wasn’t able to threaten allowance horses at Laurel Park last out, but now drops in versus nw2l claimers for Graham Motion and gets Jose Ortiz aboard. Maiden win came at this one-mile turf distance at Tampa Bay Downs, and even in defeat, the BRIS Speed figure from the Laurel Park allowance last time stacks up nicely against this field. Must be used in boxes, but is far from a sure thing.

SURGE PRICING (#5) (2-1) is the horse to beat for trainer Chad Brown, coming in off a pair of turf sprints at six furlongs to begin his career at Belmont Park, including a maiden win at first asking and then a fourth-place finish in a starter allowance behind next-out winning second-place finisher Cross Border. Finds an easier spot here if he can handle the stretch out, which is probable for this top barn that doesn’t send out many duds on the Saratoga lawn at any class level. Blinkers on.

SARATOGA COLONEL (#6) (6-1) may not be the favorite, or perhaps even one of the favorites in this race, but he’s the horse to beat and will put value into any exotics you bet in this race, even the exactas. Needed a race last time and got a prep race under his belt at Belmont Park in his return from a six-month layoff, and now gets back on the Saratoga grass course, where he ran very well twice last season and once the season before that. Has run some BRIS Speed figures on the turf that would easily beat this field, including the race three starts ago where he lost at Belmont Park against a better field. Looks ready to get past this non-winners of two class level here.

GIVETHEMAN A CIGAR (#10) (20-1) has found new life since switching to the turf in two of the last three races, first with a near miss three races ago and then with the big maiden victory finally last out. Steps up against winners for the first time but lands at the correct class level for a good barn and fits well against these rivals. Gets Luis Saez aboard, yet is likely to get overlooked on the tote board and should set-up some interesting exacta box possibilities at a nice price. Stretches out but shows good prior efforts at this one-mile distance.

One option when playing exactas in this race is to use the above runners in a four-horse exacta box, which for a $1 exacta would cost you $12. If the better-priced horses win and/or fill-out the exactas, you will make some money.

The other option is to key Saratoga Colonel (#6) in the exacta boxes along with the other three horses. A $2 key with Saratoga Colonel (#6) boxed front-and-back with My Macho (#4), Surge Pricing (#5) and Givetheman a Cigar (#10) would also cost you $12. Play the exotics with these four horses in the 12TH race nightcap at Saratoga this Saturday, and go home a winner.

Best of luck!

SARATOGA RACE 12 (FOUR-HORSE) EXACTA PICKS

Option 1: $1 Exacta Box: 4 – 5 – 6 – 10 = $12

Option 2: $2 Exacta boxes: 6 / 4, 5, 10 = $12

Read last week's free exacta bet