Awesome Again Favored in Travers

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y —  Eight 3-year-olds, none of them veterans of this year’s Triple Crown series, were entered Thursday for Saturday’s 128th running of the Travers Stakes at Saratoga.

The field for the $750,000 race, which helped Holy Bull win horse-of-the-year honors in 1994 and contributed to Thunder Gulch’s 3-year-old title in 1995, grew in numbers after Touch Gold, winner of the Belmont Stakes and the Haskell Handicap, dropped out. Touch Gold tore his left front hoof in the Preakness and aggravated the injury in training here.

Touch Gold’s stablemate, Awesome Again, is also a formidable colt, and was installed as the 9-5 favorite for the 1 1/4-mile Travers, which is likely to be run on an off track. Heavy rain fell here Thursday and there’s a wet forecast extending into Saturday. Awesome Again, trained for owner Frank Stronach by David Hofmans, has won three in a row, including the Queen’s Plate at Woodbine and, over a sloppy track, the Jim Dandy at Saratoga on Aug. 3.

Affirmed Success and Behrens, who finished third and fourth, respectively, in the Jim Dandy, are also running in the Travers. Here’s the field, in post- position order, with jockeys and odds: Blazing Sword, Gary Boulanger, 15-1; Behrens, Jerry Bailey, 5-2; Twin Spires, Joe Bravo, 20-1; Deputy Commander, Chris McCarron, 4-1; Affirmed Success, Jorge Chavez, 5-1; Awesome Again, Mike Smith, 9-5; Cryptocloser, Chris Antley, 8-1; and Affairwithpeaches, Richard Migliore, 30-1. All will carry 126 pounds.