Mastery will be trying two turns for the first time when he go

With 40 percent of the field, including the overwhelming favorite, trainer Bob Baffert appears to be sitting in a good spot to claim the Grade 1, $300,000 CashCall Futurity for the third straight time since its move to its current home, Los Alamitos, where the race formerly run at Hollywood Park will have its 36th running on Saturday.Mastery, unbeaten and already a graded stakes winner in just two starts, will be an odds-on favorite in the CashCall Futurity. Baffert also sends out Show Me Da Lute, a winner going two turns in his lone start against maidens. They are two of just five runners who are signed up for this years running, which annually is the final Grade 1 race of the year nationally for 2-year-olds.Baffert won the race in 2014 with Dortmund and last year with Mor Spirit. When the race was run at Hollywood Park, he won it six times, beginning in 1997 with Real Quiet, who went on to just miss sweeping the Triple Crown. A victory on Saturday would be Bafferts ninth in the race in the last 20 runnings and would mark his sixth win in the race in the last nine runnings.In Mastery, Baffert has a promising colt who acts as though hes going to be among the top 3-year-old prospects next spring. This, though, is an important step. Mastery will be trying two turns for the first time when he goes 1-1/16 miles, and the elongated stretch at Los Alamitos will test any young animal.I always felt that he would, Baffert said Thursday regarding Masterys ability to get two turns, but thats the question. You never know until they do it.So far, I dont see any reason why he wouldnt. Hes got a nice, big, beautiful stride. He looks like he can turn it on and off. Hes not one-dimensional.In addition to Bafferts pair, the CashCall Futurity field includes Dangerfield, Bobby Abu Dhabi, and Irap, the latter owned by CashCalls owner, Paul Reddam. Both Dangerfield and Irap are trained by Doug ONeill.The CashCall Futurity goes as race 6 on a nine-race card that begins at 12:30 p.m. Pacific. It is the first of two Grade 1 races on the card, with the $300,000 Starlet Stakes for 2-year-old fillies carded as race 8.As in the CashCall Futurity, Baffert has two runners in the Starlet, including the expected favorite, American Gal. Mike Smith rides both Mastery and American Gal.Key ContendersMastery, by Candy Ride Beyers: 87-93Both of his figures are faster than anything any of his four rivals have ever recorded.His prior wins were at six furlongs and seven furlongs. In his debut, he wore blinkers, but Baffert took them off prior to the Grade 3 Bob Hope last month at Del Mar. They are back on for the CashCall Futurity.I just think hes a little handier with them, Baffert said. When Mike worked him the other day, we worked him in blinkers, and Mike liked him better with blinkers. Theyre very small blinkers. I thought he was a little green last time, looking around.Show Me Da Lute, by Midnight Lute Beyer: 72Its never easy to win going two turns first time out, but he pulled it off, and he earned his way into this race by working well in company with Mastery, Baffert said.Bobby Abu Dhabi, by Macho Uno Beyer: 75He won going 6-1/2 furlongs in his lone start and tries to stretch out off that.He was part of a blockbuster meeting at Del Mar for Peter Miller, who ran away with the training title.Dangerfield, by Into Mischief Last 3 Beyers: 71-71-55With five starts, hes the only horse in here who has run more than twice.He was a distant third in the Delta Jackpot last time out.Irap, by Tiznow Beyers: 59-58He is winless after two starts, and this will be his first race on dirt. Wholesale Nike NBA Jerseys . Manuel was offered a position the day he was fired. He accepted earlier this week and the team made the announcement Friday. Stitched Basketball Jerseys . Only three players drafted by NHL clubs were included on the Czech selection camp roster on Wednesday. Those players were Dallas Stars 2012 first-rounder Radek Faksa, Winnipeg Jets 2013 fourth-rounder Jan Kostalek and Phoenix Coyotes 2012 seventh-rounder Marek Langhamer. http://www.cheapbasketballjerseysauthentic.com/ . Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Discount Nike NBA Jerseys . PETERSBURG, Fla. Baylor became one of the first teams this season to enter the Top 25 by virtue of a credible victory, with the Bears having defeated then-No. 4 Oregon last week.Virginia Commonwealth would like to follow that same script into the Top 25 next week.Rankings aside, Baylor (3-0) and VCU (3-0) will look across the court at a quality opponent on Wednesday when they face each other at the Battle 4 Atlantis at 2:30 p.m. ET in Nassau, Bahamas.Baylor showed off a couple of new weapons in its 66-49 win over Oregon. Junior guard Manu Lecomte, a transfer from Miami, scored 18 points and dished out seven assists, and junior college transfer Jo Lual-Acuil scored eight points, blocked seven shots and grabbed 14 rebounds.Those two players, as much as the impressive victory over the Ducks, captured the attention of the college basketball world -- including VCU coach Will Wade.Baylor is very, very talented, Wade said. I dont think a lot of people knew how good Manu Lecomte was going to be for them. Baylors a good team. That was no fluke. They beat Oregon pretty good.On the flip side, Baylor coach Scott Drew knows the Rams wont be star struck.VCU is accustomed to playing top-notch nonconference competition and has the March Madness credibility in recent years to match just about anyone in college basketball.Last season, the Rams advanced a round farther than Baylor as VCU defeated seventh-seeded Oregon State in the opening round. Then the Rams pushed Final Four-bound Oklahoma for 40 minutes before the Sooners escaped Oklahomma City with a four-point win.ddddddddddddThis is a team that is very competitive, great tradition, been in the NCAA Tournament six straight years, Drew said. So, a team thats used to being successful, used to winning.While Baylor is mixing its new standouts with quality veterans, VCU rolls with many of the same faces that helped the Rams win 25 games a year ago. Seniors Mo Allie-Cox, JeQuan Lewis, Jordan Burgess and Ahmed Hamdy-Mohamed, and junior Justin Tillman played leading roles last season and are back for more.Those players and new additions give VCU the depth that concerns Drew.They play extremely hard, play 10 guys, lot of pressure man-to-man, very physical team, Drew said.But this wont be Baylors first go-round this season with a tough opponent.Wade has seen how much trouble the Bears zone defense gave Oregon. Its easy to see how. Lual-Acuil (7-foot), forward Johnathan Motley (6-10) and reserve Terry Maston (6-8) thrive on swatting away shots in the lane.Their length will be a major, major issue for us, Wade said. We havent seen length like this since we played maybe Florida State last year. Theyve got just about everything you want in a good basketball team. It will be a challenge.Whoever survives Wednesdays game will go back for a second helping of top-level competition on Thanksgiving Day. The Baylor-VCU winner meets the No. 24 Michigan State vs. St. Johns winner. ' ' '