Editor’s Note: Special thanks to Esme Bleecker-Adams for her illustration in this article’s featured image.
The 2024 Preakness Stakes occurred five months ago. The 2024 Belmont Stakes occurred two weeks after that. The 2024 Travers Stakes occurred in late August. Paddy’s Picks guests provided analysis for all three races, and everyone’s favorite editor slacked off in his publishing duties.
To provide some semblance of a defense for myself, these guest articles have become rather difficult to write after four years. Most of you have already been introduced; you all have distinct personas and narratives on this site after making dozens of picks. Your motivations and quirks have been defined. My job is to add more paint to the picture, but at this point, it feels like I’m just cramming details into crowded corners.
Second, it’s simply a lot of work, putting these together. Wonderful, fulfilling work, but work all the same. By the time all three of these articles are in fighting shape, I’ll have nearly 20,000 words to publish. That’s almost a novella made for an audience of 50, by that same audience of 50. When I’m busy, like I was in the spring, it’s hard to find the necessary time. My schedule loosened a considerable amount over the summer, but that wasn’t necessarily by choice and forced me to prioritize more pressing things.
But as time goes by, we successfully begin new routines. We come to terms with new situations. We learn. We write an exhausting number of cover letters and wonder why learning was important in the first place. And then, maybe, we get back to work on Paddy’s Picks.
As always, a refresher: I asked my friends and loved ones to make a pick for this year’s Preakness Stakes. From a semi-professional equine journalist’s perspective, the Preakness was terrible this year, dashed by bad weather and an unacceptably weak field. My guests still tackled the assignment with their usual fervor, naturally.
Most of them got their picks in on time, but it would have been hypocritical of me to not accept the odd late submission. Over the last five months, I’ve added commentary to this article, grading and judging their picks. Some of the prose may be dated and irrelevant. Some of it may have been written in a very recent Covid-related fever dream. If there aren’t continuity errors at every turn, then I haven’t done my job incorrectly. It’s all very exciting. Let’s get crack-a-lackin’.
Editor’s Note: As noted above, this is the first of three backlogged Paddy’s Picks articles being published simultaneously. The other two are linked below:
Link to Belmont Stakes guest review here.
Link to Travers Stakes guest review here.
Pimlico, Race 13
Preakness Stakes (G1) for Three-Year-Olds, 1 3/16 Miles on the Dirt
Post Positions:
1- Mugatu (J. Bravo, J. Engler) 17-1
2- Uncle Heavy (I. Ortiz, R. Reid) 7-1
3- Catching Freedom (F. Prat, B. Cox) 7-2
4- Muth (J. Velasquez, B. Baffert) SCR
5- Mystik Dan (B. Hernandez Jr., K. McPeek) 2-1*
6- Seize the Grey (J. Torres, D. Lukas) 9-1
7- Just Steel (J. Rosario, D. Lukas) 10-1
8- Tuscan Gold (T. Gaffalione, C. Brown) 4-1
9- Imagination (L. Dettori, B. Baffert) 4-1
Race:
Order of Finish:
1- Seize the Grey (6)
2- Mystik Dan (5)
3- Catching Freedom (3)
4- Tuscan Gold (8)
5- Just Steel (7)
6- Uncle Heavy (2)
7- Imagination (9)
8- Mugatu (1)
Patrick Moquin
Hey, it’s me! I’ve decided that it’s been a little unfair of me in the past to judge all my guests’ picks in this format without first assessing my own handicapping performance in the race in question. My casual and effortless (highly strenuous and overthought) analysis does have its lapses from time to time, and it’s important to hold myself to account as well.
Paddy’s Pick: 7- Just Steel
“I’m largely uninterested in this field. Real Steel didn’t deliver at all last time out, but I have to admit that I appreciate the adjustments that the connections have made in preparation for this start. If he fits in this field, then the price is well worth a venture, particularly in exotics.”
Grade: C-
I watched this race unfold steps away from shelter during a rainstorm. I forced a friend to watch with me, one who certainly would have preferred to watch indoors. We were both left a little flat by the result. And rained on. Just Steel suffered a fracture and will require surgery, which obviously dashed any chance for redemption here. That being said, Seize the Grey wasn’t on my radar at all and I likely would have picked five horses to win ahead of him. The key to finding him was believing in D. Wayne Lukas and his decision to stretch him back out immediately after a recovery win at a shorter distance. Even then, I wouldn’t have had the vision.
Emma Moquin
Emma is now back in New York for good after graduating from Penn State in May. She begins her graduate school studies at Fordham this fall, and I have yet to give her a much-awaited tour of my alma mater, which I hope will include an abundance of tour guides and highly confidential inside information. For whatever reason, she doesn’t seem to be looking forward to it.
Emma’s Pick: 8- Tuscan Gold
“I like Tuscan Gold. Brown and Gaffalione are pretty solid and I think that without Muth in the race, he has a chance of getting revenge on Catching Freedom in the Preakness.”
Grade: C+
I wouldn’t say that any horse besides the winner ran particularly well in the Preakness, but Tuscan Gold didn’t disgrace himself, finishing fourth in the eight-horse field. He did not improve to beat Catching Freedom, however, and seemed to run his usual race, slightly hampered by the wet conditions. It was a solid pick for a strange event.
Niko Konstantellis
Niko has had an eventful summer, receiving his master’s degree in hard knocks from Fordham and traveling with me to Saratoga for the 2024 Belmont Stakes. When he made his pick for the Preakness all the way back in May, however, he was younger, wide-eyed and vulnerable. He didn’t see the world through the gritty lens that experience often lends. If you read his flowery reasoning closely, you can see the idealism of youth slowly fading.
Niko’s Pick: 8- Tuscan Gold
“My pick is 8 officially. But I placed a 7-8-9 exacta box.”
Grade: Tuscan Gold was a hyped underdog in this field, as were Just Steel and Imagination. I wouldn’t say that any of them ran particularly well, but it was also a strange race. Niko may one day find out that many handicappers tailor their analysis to specific track shapes and dimensions, which could either send him down an immense and unprofitable rabbit hole or turn him off to the exercise altogether.
Alex Voorhis
Every Wednesday, Alex sends me a message on Instagram from Terry the Fat Shark, a meme/loveable character that brings users various fake gifts, some of which are mildly offensive. That’s it, that’s her introduction.
Alex’s Pick: 2- Uncle Heavy
“Sorry for the late submission but I choose Uncle Heavy and I have no other explanation besides the name being funny.”
Grade: C-
This is only Alex’s second appearance on Paddy’s Picks, and she’s already fitting in with some experienced (and profoundly silly) guests. The key difference is that they’ve been doing this for years without any sign of improvement, while I can only assume that Alex’s reasoning will become more sophisticated as time goes on.
George McKnight
George didn’t have much time to make a pick for the Preakness, so he couldn’t approach writing with his usual eagerness. The analysis itself, however, falls well in line with the sharp observations that have earned him his stellar reputation on this site in the past.
George’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan, 9- Imagination
“Imagination is an interesting play here. Since his maiden, he has run 4 times and either won or finished within a neck of the winner in each race. These races include a G1, a G2, and a first-level allowance. Jockey Frankie Dettori will ride him to win, and familiar face Bob Baffert is an eight-time Preakness winner. I completely wrote off Mystik Dan in the Derby, who showed a lot of prowess dealing with a muddy track. With rain in the forecast for the Preakness, I’d expect him to finish near the front this time too. I’ll pair Imagination and Dan together in an exacta box. LGR.”
Grade: B
Mystik Dan likely did benefit from a muddy track and performed honestly in the Preakness, though it was not enough to earn a second victory on the Triple Crown trail. Like many bettors, George didn’t seem to take Seize the Grey seriously, and Imagination failed to fire in the stretch. The Knicks and Rangers both fell in the postseasons of their respective sports.
Chris Murray
Chris received his bachelor’s degree from Fordham University several hours before the Preakness Stakes. Though he entered the great beyond before the gates opened at Pimlico, I like to think that he was watching the race with all of us from up above.
Chris’ Pick: 7- Just Steel
“I’d probably pick Just Steel to pull off the upset though. I think the Derby was an anomaly.”
Grade: C+
Chris texted me his pick on the morning of his graduation, which I took to mean that he probably didn’t do much new analysis and simply leaned on the ideas he formed before the Kentucky Derby. Several guests were guilty of this, including me to an extent. The difference is that Chris had a reasonable excuse, though he is unlikely to accept that as he prepares for the Belmont Stakes.
Maddie Sandholm
Readers may notice that Maddie put an immense amount of effort into her analysis for the Preakness, at least compared to her usual outings. The truth of it will soon become clear, however, as she simply got distracted by something that annoyed her and dedicated several paragraphs to processing the information. Keep an eye out for some nice alliteration out of the gate.
Maddie’s Pick: 3- Catching Freedom
“The fact that Seize the Grey isn’t in gray is a true tragedy, this would’ve been my quickest pick yet if he was. I’m a big fan of the name but I also can’t get over the British spelling of “grey.” (The following was a side note, but it has since turned into my entire reasoning.) Also, I think I’ve only just now realized that the Daily Racing Form uses “grey” for the colors of the silks. The only research I did for this pick was finding out where the DRF is based out of. Spoiler alert: It’s not anywhere where I’d maybe accept their use of British English; it’s our very own New York, New York. What’s up with the British spelling, DRF?
Now, at this point, looking through the color combos, the word “grey” is sticking out way more than it should, and I’m inclined not to pick a horse that’s wearing gray. However, Catching Freedom — in blue with a white star and blue stripes on gr[a]y— sounds like just the horse we need to rid us of this British influence. Catching Freedom is a true patriot, and I believe in his ability to win because of that.
Would I have picked this horse if I hadn’t gone down this gray/grey rabbit hole? Who’s to say, but I know Catching Freedom can and will win this race for his country.”
Grade: B-
In an unwieldy running of the Preakness, Maddie’s support for Catching Freedom and her country’s version of English should be enough for a B grade. Unfortunately, she spent several paragraphs specifically attacking the horse that went on to win the race. As penance (or perhaps in another act of frustration), she has agreed to craft her Belmont Stakes analysis in an uncharacteristically (and hopefully silly) British mode. Stay tuned.
Allie Stofer
Where does Allie go when she leaves the rooms I’m in? She claims to have a job at some level of government, and presumably lives in an apartment somewhere. I’ve even seen the apartment. But what does she get up to, ya know? What does a Wednesday afternoon look like for Allie?
Allie’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“Mystik Dan — I’m pretty sure he won last time and gave me my first Paddy’s Pick win. I will continue to believe in his ability to confuse the other horses with his name.”
Grade: B+
I would have to do a fact check on Allie’s Kentucky Derby win, but it’s certainly true that wins haven’t been easy to come by for her. That being said, Mystik Dan very nearly delivered again for her in this race, as the colt hung around for place money behind Seize the Grey. Is there momentum building for this hard-luck Paddy’s Picks guest?
Shaily Jani
Shaily is taking the LSAT in early June, so I find it extremely unlikely that I’m going to get a Belmont Stakes pick out of her. You’ll just have to revel in her sharp Preakness analysis and stop your complaining. She’ll be back when she’s a cool aspiring lawyer. With her cool aspiring lawyer clothes they give you after you take the LSAT. Briefcase. Lincoln. John Grisham. Gavel? No, they don’t have to do that part. Objection.
Shaily’s Pick: 9- Imagination
“My pick is Imagination. Einstein once said, ‘Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.’ That guy generally knew what he was talking about, and clearly he was talking about this horse. If this pick was good enough for Einstein, it’s good enough for me.”
Grade: D
Yet another classic case where Einstein had no clue what he was talking about. Imagination finished seventh.
Ryan Harvey
Ryan is from Pennsylvania.
Ryan’s Pick: 2- Uncle Heavy
“Uncle Heavy. Country strong for sure.”
Grade: C
C for Country.
Emily Ellis
Sometimes I can look at a horse race and predict that Emily will come to a quick conclusion. It was definitely an impression I got when I sent out requests for the Preakness.
Emily’s Pick: 2- Uncle Heavy
“I opened it and saw Uncle Heavy and that was all I needed to see.”
Grade: C-
This could’ve been way worse, as I didn’t give Uncle Heavy a chance in hell to win at Pimlico. That turned out to be close enough, but the long shot did manage to outrun a few rivals in a mediocre performance. Emily unquestionably picked the best name, and there’s no shame in that.
Mia Agostinelli
Mia can’t serve in World War II because of some temporal hang-ups, but her long-distance running and flight training are still going smoothly. SCUBA lessons start next month.
Mia’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“I’m going to go with Mystik Dan. He’s won in similar conditions, has a high speed rating and is a strong contender with Hernandez’s race strategy. Maybe I’m just hopeful, or maybe I just rely heavily on confirmation bias (thanks to Steve Kornacki).”
Grade: B+
This was a nice pick for Mia, who took a reliable runner in a weak field. Mystik Dan didn’t win the race, but still managed to take a solid run at Seize the Grey while the rest of the field floundered in the stretch. As soon as Paddy’s Picks gets the budget it deserves, Mia will get a Kornacki-esque big board and give almost-correct horse racing predictions.
Ava Peabody
You know how we always talk about moths getting drawn to flames without getting into the nitty gritty of their gruesome demises? Let’s get into that. Our moth: Ava.
Ava’s Pick: 2- Uncle Heavy
“Uncle Heavy without a shadow of a doubt.”
Grade: C-
If I had the opportunity to build a horse race specifically designed to take money out of Ava’s pocket, I would bring together this exact field. I would still do this now. I’m fully convinced that even after hearing about the result the first time around, Ava would choose Uncle Heavy again. It’s a silly name for a horse that never had any chance of winning. Not only is it the fastest anyone has ever reached a conclusion on Paddy’s Picks, but it’s also the fastest decision I’ve ever seen Ava make in any context.
Alyssa Macaluso
Alyssa recently announced that she’ll be attending graduate school at Georgetown. I assume that she’ll be studying something very interesting, but instead of asking her, I requested her pick for the Preakness instead. Paddy’s Picks demands sacrifices from time to time.
Alyssa’s Pick: 7- Just Steel
“Seize the Grey because that’s an AWESOME name! But I think Just Steel is going to bump in and steal gold. Let’s say Mystik Dan brings up third.”
Grade: B
Alyssa was dangerously close to landing on the winning horse here, to the point that her wording was unclear enough to make it a possibility. Still, my interpretation of her analysis is that she ultimately chose Just Steel, the only one of her top trio that didn’t deliver. Alyssa is always tough to grade because she usually lands on at least one interesting runner, but this one was especially tough and might even be a bit harsh.
Kreena Vora
This month, Kreena will watch Lord of the Rings for the first time. That hasn’t been guaranteed just yet, but I figure that putting the statement in print will make it more likely to occur. She has trained for months to morally prepare herself for the trilogy, and I really look forward to the moment when the final credits roll and she texts me that it was “fine” and that she was glad she watched it.
Kreena’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“Catching Fire seems fast and has won some races. Tuscan Gold and Imagination are interesting, but inexperienced. Mystik Dan has the momentum and the speed after the derby. Mystik will win. It’s his year.”
Grade: B+
In a bracket game I put together a few weeks ago, Kreena picked the Los Angeles Knights to go to the Stanley Cup Finals. That’s not a real hockey team and they didn’t make much of an impression in the tournament. In that vein, Catching Fire didn’t run very well in the Preakness because that’s the name of the second Hunger Games novel. Catching Freedom ran slightly better. Elsewhere, Kreena made the right decision to pick Mystik Dan over a few of the new faces in the race, but she completely missed Seize the Grey. That might be for the best, as most literary mixups there would have required censorship.
Corbin Gregg
Corbin is an adult with very proper goings on, to the point that I frankly can’t publicize much of his life in this casual setting anymore. Employers unnerve me, as do medical professionals and most clowns. It’s a shame, because there’s some really interesting stuff going on with him right now. The more I write, the more likely it is that I delete all of this and just break it down for you all. To give you a taste, there’s a non-zero chance that he’s slowly morphing into a camel. But that’s all you’re getting!
Corbin’s Pick: 6- Seize the Grey
“Seize the Grey is going to go from 50 shades to 50 lengths ahead of the competition.”
Grade: A+
Corbin went in a surprising direction with his analysis but it was exactly correct. Well, not exactly correct — a 50-length victory was a preposterous prediction. Still, Seize the Grey was clearly the best horse in the Preakness and Corbin earned his grade here.
Grace Getman
As always, Grace packed a great deal of nuance into her analysis of the 2024 Preakness Stakes. In a rare twist, however, she is also now demonstrating bilingual range, which has only been explored in a minor capacity to this point on the site.
Grace’s Pick: 6- Seize the Grey
“🫴👨🏼🦳. 👍🏻🐴.”
Grade: A+
Ever the Hemingway acolyte, Grace’s terse, athletic prose painted a triumphantly beautiful tapestry of a case for Seize the Grey. His victory on the sloppy Pimlico track was ultimately made possible by the artists among us who supported him. 👍
Esme Bleecker-Adams
Yet again, Esme has provided an illustration to accompany this Paddy’s Picks article. I have to publish it. My writing and tens of people’s picks can wait — Esme’s artwork cannot.
Esme’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“As a romantic, I have to root for the triple crown, so I’m hopping on the Mystik Dan bandwagon, long may he reign. For second place, I’ll go with Seize the Grey since I enjoy puns, “Newsies”, and the color grey.”
Grade: A-
Mystik Dan didn’t continue his bid for the Triple Crown, but if Esme had taken time out of her day to bet an exacta box on her top two finishers, she would’ve walked away with a tidy profit. On a website full of so-called “knowledgeable bettors” and “heavily indebted gamblers,” Esme provided some of the most useful analysis for this year’s Preakness.
Roxanne Cubero
Roxanne took a well-read approach to this year’s Preakness. Let’s see if stealing wisdom from the New York Times served her well.
Roxanne’s Pick: 9- Imagination
“To regurgitate those from The Athletic that also picked Imagination, with Muth scratched the door is open for Imagination as the lone speed. From what I may or may not be remembering incorrectly, the post position is not ideal but Barry Spears says it should not be an issue.”
Grade: D
Unlike most Paddy’s Picks guests, Roxanne has not stuck to a single writing or handicapping style during her time on the website. This time around, she seemed to fall back on the opinions of experts. This reinforced her opinion of Imagination, who ran a strange race on a strange Pimlico track and finished seventh. I hope she and Barry Spears never combine forces again.
Eddie Harrison
In our senior year of college, Eddie once entered my backyard inexplicably wearing overalls. I don’t believe I ever asked him why he was wearing overalls. There were several people in the backyard that he had never met before and would never see again, so whenever I mention him to these people in passing, I refer to him as the kid in the overalls. They all distinctly remember him for this reason. I haven’t seen him wear overalls since.
Eddie’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“Hello to my masochistic fanbase. As I write this, my boss, who you may be surprised to know is not Patrick Moquin, is waiting for a report with a tight deadline. Frankly, he doesn’t understand the importance of this website to my work life balance. My pick is Mystik Dan. Why? Because I love Steely Dan. I don’t know how I missed this one for the Kentucky Derby, but that about aligns with my expectations of horse racing and my boss’s expectations of me.”
Grade: B+
Eddie’s love of Steely Dan was a moment late, as Mystik Dan failed to repeat his Derby success. Though he finished behind upset winner Seize the Grey, he still ran well in the slop at Pimlico, allowing Eddie to rest easy knowing that he satiated his fanbase.
Matt Ludington
Matt has vowed to come to New York City at least four times in the past year, and he has either failed to do so or has masterfully avoided me. At some point, I may have to arrange another trip with friends to Saratoga, because Matt alone isn’t quite enough for me to travel to Upstate New York.
Matt’s Pick: 3- Catching Freedom
“Catching Freedom will be catching a dub no matter the cost.”
Grade: B-
Catching Freedom did not, in fact, catch a dub, at a great cost to his owners and anyone who bet on him.
Audrey O’Brien
Audrey see, Audrey pick.
Audrey’s Pick: 2- Uncle Heavy
“Uncle Heavy lol. That’s a silly name.”
Grade: C-
Lolz. So quirky.
Juliana Burke
Juliana recently moved from the forests of Minnesota to Boston. I think. If she’s pursuing a career in professional kayaking, this seems like a step in the wrong direction. If she’s pursuing a career in professional rowing, however, it might be a shrewd decision.
Jul’s Pick: 3- Catching Freedom
“Catching Freedom will be the winner because he embodies what it means to be a pure American horse. I’m feeling confident about this one.”
Grade: B-
Jul’s support for this great nation and confidence in its ability to lead her to victory were unfortunately unfounded, though Catching Freedom did run well enough to finish third. Her patriotism remains unquestioned, however. I can think of no other reason to live in Massachusetts.
Marissa Gootee
Instead of forming a cohesive explanation for her racing picks, Marissa likes to text them out in real time. Sometimes, that results in a back-and-forth with me that doesn’t read like an explanation at all, but I find it entertaining and haven’t asked her to switch up styles. She wouldn’t do so if I asked anyway.
Marissa’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“What’s Mystik Dan doing racing again? He just won? (He’s going for the Triple Crown.) Ohhhh. Like like Miss Universe. I see. Well, I can’t bail on him now. I want him to become Miss Universe. He’s going to be a star. I know these things. Wow, what a journey. He better win.”
Grade: B+
After capturing Miss Kentucky, male horse Mystik Dan failed to take the Miss Universe title in… Maryland? I don’t know if Marissa’s metaphor tracks all the way through, but her pick was far from disgraced in a runner-up performance.
Jill Rice
Jill Rice is the most editor in the world. Their’s no doubting her knowldege of AP Style, which she taught me to learn good too. We can only oneder how she has put her coppy skills to use all the way around the ocean in Germany these passed too years.
Jill’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“After some short googling, this race is taking place at the fairgrounds in Timonium, where I’ve been every year for the RV Show! Basically I have raced horses there too. But for my real betting that’s not just me giving fun facts about my connection to the race’s location, I like Mystik Dan. Dan is such a non-mystical name, Mystic is in Connecticut, Dan could really be a guy from Connecticut’s name. Now, the idea of neither Connecticut nor a guy named Dan is really a winning bet. But maybe it’s the double negative that makes him a winning type.”
Grade: B+
Do we think Jill has recovered from her stroke yet? I doubt she made it past “oneder.”
Gil Russo
Gil recently moved into a new apartment, her third in three years. We at Paddy’s Picks genuinely hope she finds her forever home on this occasion, though there are some lovely spots in Central Park available if more issues arise.
Gil’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“I didn’t pick Mystik Dan last time, so I’m gonna do it this time. Though quite frankly, I’ll be glad if anyone wins besides Uncle Heavy. That name just has weird, creepy, bad vibes. I can’t say Mystik Dan sounds much better, but he won once, so I’m hoping picking him won’t be a big mystake.”
Grade: B+
Going against Uncle Heavy was an excellent decision, but Mystik Dan pulled a double reverso (technical term) on Gil and let her down as soon as she jumped on the bandwagon. Bonus points for some lovely wordplay at the end of her analysis, however.
Owen Roche
Owen Roche of the Amish Country and Courtney Brogle of Three Mile Island are engaged to be married. Right in front of my occasionally attentive eyes, they began a school newspaper romance I was hardly aware of when I worked with them, briefly endured a long-distance relationship I never asked about and eventually settled into a cozy apartment on the Upper East Side with a lovely living room. It’s unfortunately clear to me now that I didn’t fully lock in on the wonders of my friends’ loving relationship until I saw their well-lit, immensely welcoming living room, but it’s truly wonderful to have been intermittently present to witness such a union form.
Owen’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“In spite of a rested B*b B*ffert contender and other heavy-hitting Derby-skippers, the M.D.’s got one more house call in him. Mystik Dan, supreme Beyer darling of the field, has the goods to silence fluke allegations in any weather. Steve Kornacki is a hack and a fraud.”
Grade: B+
This must be the second time Owen has charmed an editor by mentioning Beyer Speed Figures. Sure enough, his statistical analysis meshed well with a top-notch medical joke for a solid result. It’s unclear how he could have used this logic to get to Seize the Grey, but I won’t knock a technique that’s producing.
Clara Gerlach
Forgive me for jumping the gun a little, but you’re all about to discover that Clara’s favorite color is gray. I promise my readers that I’m going to get to the bottom of this. I don’t want to impart any disrespect on someone’s favorite color, but I’ve never heard of anyone sharing this particular color with Clara. Most people pick a favorite by connecting a color to some sort of emotion or object or setting. Is Clara the Winter Soldier?
Clara’s Pick: 6- Seize the Grey
“I’m going for him since I love puns and gray is my favorite color.”
Grade: A+
Clara is exactly the type of Paddy’s Picks guest to get behind a punny name, and usually that leads to disastrous results. Punny horses don’t usually fare well in big races. Seize the Grey bucked the trend, however, earning Clara an impressive Triple Crown victory in a nearly indecipherable race.
Isa Piazza
Months after the Preakness took place, Isa invited me on a bookstore crawl to celebrate her birthday, and I had a blast sifting through books I couldn’t afford. She forced me to do a dramatic reading of a romance book synopsis, which I did with the minimal grace and dignity I’m capable of mustering. It was the best time I’ve ever had in Brooklyn.
Isa’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“He has a good track record I think. And I like his name. Very Vampire Diaries Mystic Falls of him.”
Grade: B+
Mystik Dan was a solid pick in this race. It’s rarely unwise to pick the Kentucky Derby winner to run solidly in the Preakness, but the colt ultimately failed to make up the ground to take down upset winner Seize the Grey. Isa is the type of Paddy’s Picks guest that might have landed on the winner on name alone, but she still earned a solid grade with a runner-up finish.
Emma Regovich
At around the time of the Preakness, Emma was likely deeply invested in the New York Rangers playoff prospects, as the team was being touted as a Stanley Cup contender after a thrilling series against the Carolina Hurricanes. We all know now that it wasn’t the team’s year, but hearing someone as kind and loving as Emma wish abject violence on opposing teams in those weeks was highly entertaining.
Emma’s Pick: 3- Catching Freedom
“After watching Chris Kreider’s hat trick last night and the comeback win, I’m feeling patriotic in the sense of Rangers red, white, and blue, so I’ll go with Catching Freedom.”
Grade: C
We love a Kreider mention on Paddy’s Picks, but Catching Freedom did not deliver a performance to match his human counterpart in Emma’s analysis. Just as there will be more seasons for the Rangers, however, so too will Emma have more opportunities to find winners at Pimlico.
Christian Madlansacay
Christian’s relocation to Upstate New York has played a part in my slacking Marvel viewership. Along with a dip in quality and increase in content, Christian’s absence has certainly hurt my motivation to watch religiously. I used to watch certain Marvel products solely for in-person discussions with Fordham Lincoln Center’s authority on the subject. If only there were ways for us to communicate remotely.
Christian’s Pick: 8- Tuscan Gold
“Tuscan Gold because garlic Tuscan bread is really good.”
Grade: C+
Not the best horse, but excellent reasoning from Christian here. Associations between horses and garlic bread are very rare and based on how cool they both are on their own, one would have to imagine that combining the two would yield profit. It’s only a matter of time before this innovative strategy gains traction.
Lucas Ludgate
Lucas Ludgate was in New York City when he did his handicapping for the Preakness Stakes. The fact that the relocated Texan could finally bet on the pick he made for this website should have been an immediate sign that his pick would be terrible.
Lucas’ Pick: 8- Tuscan Gold
“Analyzing on the 1 train right now. That’s my level of dedication to the craft. Mugatu in the cut. I have to give a shout-out to my boy.
Gotta be Tuscan Gold. Great trends with the Gaffalione/Brown combo.”
Grade: C+
Tuscan Gold wasn’t a disgrace, finishing fourth, but merely mentioning Mugatu knocks Lucas down a few pegs. His dedication to the craft, while admirable, only seems to reward him when he can’t directly bet on the horses he likes.
Matt Clarkin
There was a point in Matt’s life where he watched close to 15 Marvel movies in the span of two months in order to prepare for Avengers: Infinity War. If you asked him what he would want me to remember as his most admirable moment, he’d likely request one of his performances in baseball or a situation in which he was morally upstanding. Nope, nothing coming to mind for those. Just Marvel marathon, man.
Matt’s Pick: 3- Catching Freedom
“I’ll take Catching Freedom. I like Mystik Dan but I didn’t choose him for the Derby so I’m not switching up now. And if he wins this I will bet against him in the Belmont too. For Catching Freedom, the pick is strictly based off of I like his name. Fourth at the Derby was just a warm up. He’s ready now.”
Grade: B-
I appreciate Matt’s determination to beat Mystik Dan after missing out on the Derby. Trying to chase that money would have proved unsuccessful. He failed to find the winner, however, as Catching Freedom came home in a distant third. Seize the Grey is a punny name that swayed some in this article, but Matt isn’t the sort of person to fall for that sort of thing. Shame.
Megan DiDominica
Megan played the cello growing up, and despite never once talking about the instrument outside of class or regularly bringing it home with her from elementary school, I genuinely believed that it was a passion of hers until about a year ago. For the record, I didn’t necessarily think that she still played. I think I just assumed that it was physically impossible for anyone else to take less of an interest in their string instrument than I did. I naturally assumed that I was surrounded by virtuosos while my viola collected dust.
Megan’s Pick: 5- Mystik Dan
“Mystik Dan because of Jason Kelce. Seize the Grey second. I’m surprised a “hair dye for men” company has not capitalized on that slogan.”
Grade: A
So close! Megan picked the top two finishers in the Preakness out of order, which is far better than anything I came up with in presumably more time. Her sparse, instinctual reasoning can lead to confusion, but the results in this case were irrefutable.
Nicole Kraemer
Nicole is both in the military and an employee for Disney. I could ask her how both of these things are possible, but the idea of a Disney shadow government makes me chuckle so I can live without the truth. I’m probably not allowed to know it anyway.
Nicole’s Pick: 3- Catching Freedom
“To be honest if the order was different I may have gone with the Tuscan one or Imagination but I felt 3 drew me in first so that’s that.”
Grade: B-
Based on the three horses she mentioned, Nicole was never getting close to finding the winner of this year’s Preakness. Catching Freedom, Tuscan Gold and Imagination all figured as contenders but delivered disappointing performances. By mentioning those three horses specifically, however, Nicole has forced me into a sort of paralysis. I can’t decide between another military joke, a study abroad joke or another Disney joke.