By Matt Shifman and Bob Ehalt

Hot List Key:
 A: A preferred horse to watch                         B: Secondary horse to watch
*C: Went down 2 or more betting notches and finished 1st through 3rd
*D: Went down 2 or more betting notches and finished 4^th or worse
* - 4 or more betting notches if 11-1 or more.

1^st race [NY, Md Sp Wt, 6 ½ F] – (4) Mischief Joke has four second-place finishes in five starts and has the appearance of a bridesmate but in the last three he finished ahead of a return winner and appears to have found the right field from which to graduate. (6) Mama’s Dream is a first time starter for Mike Maker that attracted Irad Ortiz to ride. (7) Officer Derick set the pace in his debut at Saratoga for a trainer whose young horses usually need a race. (3) Perliano returns as a first time gelding for his third start.

2^nd race [OC 80k/C, 1 mi] – (1) Business Model and (1A) Bold Endeavor both won their last races and make a formidable entry for David Jacobson. (3) Best Actor won 3 of his first 4 starts as a 3-year-old including the Smarty Jones (G3) at Parx for Brad Cox. He was second in his 2023 debut before trying a stakes race at Ellis Park. (5) Kinetic Sky returned from a three-month layoff to finish second at this level just six days ago for Rick Dutrow who brings horses back on short rest in opportune spots. (6) Uncle Moonlight also came back from a layoff to finish second, got claimed, and comes back in 19 days.

3^rd race [Alw 25000s, 1 1/8 mi] – (7) Mystic Night was claimed for $62,500 just 19 days ago and drops into an ideal spot in this starter allowance after facing much tougher competition in recent races. He won 3 out of 4 career starts at Aqueduct. (5) Lookin At Roses fits well at this level with a win at Parx two races back and a third at Delaware Park. (3) Higher Quality comes back in two weeks after a win at Pimlico in a starter allowance. (4) Classic Mark was claimed for $25,000 following two wins including a $50,000 starter allowance and is projected to get loose on the lead.

5^th race [Md Sp Wt, 6F TURF] – (11) Catskill Humor (C) was bet down from 6-1 to 7-2 in her second career start which was also her first of the year and rallied from the back of the pack to finish second beaten by only a neck. (7) Oolong Hai returns from a June layoff with four top three finishes. She may get an easy lead in this field. (3) Material Witness had the lead at Kentucky Downs last time and finished third behind by a half-length in her first try on the turf. (4) You Only Live Once will make her debut for Todd Pletcher as a son of a good turf sire with Irad in the saddle.

Best bets: Mischief Joke (1^st); Mystic Night (3^rd). Best value:  Jacobson entry (2^nd); Catskill Humor (5^th).