Keeler Johnson's picks and plays of April 14

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares picks and plays for Friday, April 14 at Keeneland, including exacta and double wagers.

Today’s special offers from TwinSpires include:

• Rest of the World $10 Money Back: Receive refunds on win bets (up to $10) if your horse finishes second in any race at Randwick in Australia.
• $10,000 Keeneland Spring Meet Leaderboard: Place $10+ win bets at Keeneland from April 7-23 (excluding April 9) to earn points and compete for your share of $10,000 in prizes.

Picks and Plays

Keeneland: Race 1: Maiden Special Weight (six furlongs, 1:00 p.m. ET)

#2 Sweet Cherry Pie (8-1) is the lone three-year-old in a field otherwise filled with four-year-olds, and that means Sweet Cherry Pie might have a little more upside than his rivals. The Rusty Arnold trainee has only run once, making a middle move after a slow start to finish fourth in a seven-furlong maiden special weight at Gulfstream Park.

Arnold wins at a 24% rate with second-time starters, and Sweet Cherry Pie is adding blinkers for his second assignment, so there are reasons to believe this son of Twirling Candy can move forward in a meaningful way. We’ll bet him to win and key him over #8 Global Stage (1-1), #5 Cape Trafalgar (3-1), and #6 Nasty Habit (15-1) in the exacta and trifecta.

Selections

• #2 Sweet Cherry Pie (8-1)
• #8 Global Stage (1-1)
• #5 Cape Trafalgar (3-1)

Wagers

• $15 to win on #2 Sweet Cherry Pie
• $5 Exacta: 2 with 5,8 ($10)
• $2.50 Trifecta: 2 with 5,8 with 5,8 ($5)
  Total: $30

Keeneland: Race 8: $100,000 Allowance Optional Claiming (6 1/2 furlongs, 4:44 p.m. ET)

#9 Chi Town Lady (9-5), a 17-1 upset winner of the seven-furlong Test (G1) at Saratoga last summer, is the morning line favorite. But the four-year-old filly hasn’t run since November and is a deep closer who might not receive the best setup in this largely paceless allowance field.

Let’s try to beat Chi Town Lady with the speedy #2 Travel Column (3-1). While best known for winning the Golden Rod (G2) and Fair Grounds Oaks (G2) over 1 1/16 miles, Travel Column is also 2-for-3 sprinting. Her lone sprint defeat came in the 2022 Ballerina H. (G1) at Saratoga, in which she carved out the pace before fading to finish fourth behind 2022 champion female sprinter Goodnight Olive.

We’ll single Travel Column to start a double wager, then key her over Chi Town Lady in a cold exacta.

Selections

• #2 Travel Column (3-1)
• #9 Chi Town Lady (9-5)
• #5 Novel Squall (6-1)

Wagers

• $30 Double: 2 with 7
• $10 Exacta: 2 with 9
  Total: $40

Keeneland: Race 9: Maker’s Mark Mile (G1, one mile on turf, 5:16 p.m. ET)

French classic winner #7 Modern Games (3-5) is 3-for-3 in North America, unleashing explosive rallies to win the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1), 2022 Woodbine Mile (G1), and 2022 Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1). The latter victory came at Keeneland.

Modern Games is returning to Keeneland for his four-year-old debut and looks mighty tough to beat. We’ll single him to conclude our double wager, and then try an exacta using former European campaigner #5 Dr Zempf (6-1) for second place.

Selections

• #7 Modern Games (3-5)
• #5 Dr Zempf (6-1)
• #4 Emmanuel (4-1)

Wagers

• $10 Exacta: 7 with 5

Good luck!