2009: A year in review

Tabbed with the assignment of providing the 2009 Year-In-Review for ESPN.com, my first thoughts were Rachel Alexandra, Zenyatta … and what else?

At This Hour 12pm ET: Dallas Tryouts, Marlins Seeking Chapman, Belmont Stakes

...according to MLB.com, have offered Chapman a five-year deal totaling $13 million per year. Belmont Stakes Improvements Needed According to the NY Daily News, the Triple Crown may become the Double Crown...

Stacks of stakes at Fair Grounds

Last Saturday's loss is this Saturday's gain at Fair Grounds Race Course.

Most influential horses of the decade

My run on ESPN.com began in 2000 with the opening of the new millennium and it's hard to believe there have been 10 years of bylines.

Rags To Riches blew fans away with her Belmont Stakes win in the summer of 2007

Sponsor deals not smooth as silks

An argument that once centered on "the tradition of the turf" is now based on a more practical disagreement -- revenue sharing.

Sporting an Anheuser-Busch logo on his pants, Jose Santos rode Funny Cide in the 2003 Belmont Stakes

The Year of the Filly lives on

The best horse of the Caribbean will be decided on the track, in the 42nd running of the Clasico del Caribe on Sunday, December 6th, when Camarero Racetrack in San Juan, Puerto Rico, hosts the premier horse-racing event of the region.

Summer Bird OK after surgery

Summer Bird, the nation's leading 3-year-old in 2009, underwent successful surgery to mend a nondisplaced fracture of the cannon bone of his right foreleg on Friday and could return to trainer Tim Ice's winter base in Arkansas by the middle of this week.

Just getting started

...the Dec. 6 Japan Cup Gold provided there are American starters such as this year's Belmont Stakes winner Summer Bird. Stirred slightly by the efforts of runners in the Dubai World Cup, racing...

Blind Luck faces test in G1 Starlet

Before Blind Luck made her California debut in late July, jockey Rafael Bejarano worked her several times for trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, always giving positive reports.

Early prep for Derby prospects

The calendar may still say 2009, but for all intents and purposes here in California, the road to the 2010 Triple Crown kicks off on Saturday at Hollywood Park.

Wood tops 29 Aqueduct stakes

Aqueduct will conduct 29 stakes worth a total of $3,555,000 in the first four months of 2010 as the New York Racing Association on Friday released a partial stakes schedule for next year.

Rule captures $750K Delta Jackpot

Rule will be freshened in Florida following his gutsy win Friday night in the Grade 3, $750,000 Delta Jackpot and is expected to return to action in either February or March, said his trainer, Todd Pletcher.

The Usual Q.T. wins Hollywood Derby

A winning streak that began in a maiden race for statebreds at Del Mar in August shows no sign of ending for The Usual Q.T.