Top two-year-old back in training

Horseracing Betting Lines

12/13/2011 - Hallandale Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Leading two-year-old Union Rags is being slowly brought back to training in time for the 2012 Triple Crown races. The colt, trained by Michael Matz. is back at Gulfstream Park to begin light workouts.

"We got on his back Saturday and just walked him for about a half hour. Starting on the 15th, he's going to be ridden every day," Matz said. "Then after the first of the year, we'll take him down to Palm Meadows to start some serious training."

Undefeated in his first three starts Union Rags, owned by breeder Phyllis Wyeth, lost by a head to Hansen in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile at Churchill Downs on November 5. Since that race he was sent to a farm in Wellington, FL for some rest and relaxation.

"He's got a terrific disposition. He's a real smart horse. I had him in the paddock where he's away from other horses," Matz explained. "He was a little restless in the paddock, so we put him in a paddock right by the side of where the horses go to train. He loved it. He watched them all go by, and he just loved it."

With more than $800,000 already banked, Union Rags is the early favorite for the Kentucky Derby on the first Saturday in May. Matz is looking to use Gulfstream's three-year-old stakes series to prepare for the Run for the Roses.

"I would say the logical schedule would be the Fountain of Youth (Feb. 26) and the Florida Derby (March 31)," Matz said. "He's here and we don't have to ship around. If something happens where we have a change of plans where we have to do something different, we're going to nominate him to just about everything."

Union Rags has Javier Castellano as his rider, winning the Saratoga Special and Champagne before the Breeders' Cup Juvenile loss.

Wwwplayblackjack Horseracing Betting News

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Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

Should be in:

Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it?

Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel.

Work left to do:

Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third.

Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim.

Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either.

Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim.

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