Road to the Breeders' Cup Picks & Best Bets for September 20: Pennsylvania Derby + Princess Rooney Stakes

The Pennsylvania Derby features a fascinating field topped by Baeza. Find out how Robert Criscola is betting on this $1 million event, as well as the Princess Rooney.

Robert Criscola - Betting Analyst at Covers.com
Robert Criscola • Betting Analyst
Sep 19, 2025 • 12:30 ET • 4 min read
Baeza horse racing
Photo By - Imagn Images. Baeza during a morning workout.

The final Breeders’ Cup odds preps are approaching. The Pennsylvania Derby puts three-year-olds — and Breeders' Cup Classic hopefuls — in the spotlight, while the Princess Rooney Stakes sees fillies and mares face off for an automatic berth to the Filly & Mare Sprint.

Check out my free betting picks for each race on Saturday, September 20.

Pennsylvania Derby odds, prediction and best bet

  • Race: Parx Race 14
  • Post time: 6:00 p.m. ET
  • TV: FanDuel TV
Post Horse Track odds FanDuel bet365
1 So Sandy 15-1 +1500 +1500
2 Altobelli 50-1 +5000 +5000
3 Magnitude 6-1 +600 +600
4 David of Athens 12-1 +1200 +1200
5 Happily Delusional 30-1 +3000 +3000
6 Goal Oriented 5-2 +250 +250
7 Big Truzz 10-1 +1000 +1000
8 Baeza 2-1 +200 +200
9 Gosger 4-1 +400 +400
10 Mo Plex 12-1 +1200 +1200

Odds as of 9-19.

No. 8 Baeza (2-1) may only have one career win to his name, but he's a deserving favorite for the Pennsylvania Derby. 

He's been out-finished by Journalism three separate times, though he was quite close in two of those efforts. He was last seen losing by just a length to Sovereignty, the frontrunner for Horse of the Year honors.

Hector Berrios is in to ride this son of McKinzie once more, and he has tactical options with this colt. I expect him to get first run at the tiring leaders. 

No. 9 Gosger (4-1) has lost by a half-length to Journalism in each of his last two starts — the Preakness and the Haskell.

His most recent work for trainer Brendan Walsh was sharp, and Luis Saez has the call once more.

Best bet: $10 exacta box 8/9 ($20)

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Princess Rooney Stakes odds, prediction and best bet

  • Race: Gulfstream Race 10
  • Post time: 5:36 p.m. ET
  • TV: FanDuel TV
Post Horse Track odds FanDuel bet365
1 Vincey Girl 4-1 +400 +400
2 Haulin Ice 7-2 +350 +350
3 Ultimate Authority 8-1 +800 +800
4 Nerazzuri 20-1 +2000 +2000
5 Reputation 6-1 +600 +600
6 Mystic Lake 5-2 +250 +250
7 Gallop d'Hermes 30-1 +3000 +3000
8 Claret Beret 3-1 +300 +300

Odds as of 9-19.

I'll be willing to play against No. 6 Mystic Lake (5-2, morning-line favorite) in spite of her three-race win streak, earned against mostly suspect opposition at Lone Star, Delaware, and Charles Town. Two of her last three wins featured a combined five rivals.

No. 1 Vincey Girl (4-1) and No. 2 Haulin Ice (7-2) are the two most logical alternatives, and they each exit the Sheer Drama Stakes at this course. Vincey Girl got the win after closing into a fast pace.

Haulin Ice couldn't run with Vincey Girl in the stretch that day but was closer to an early pace that melted down. She had a four-race win streak heading into that heat.

Best bet: $10 exacta box 1/2 ($20)

Road to the Breeders’ Cup Classic

Race Date Track Result
Saudi Cup* February 22 King Abdulaziz Racetrack Forever Young
February Stakes* February 23 Tokyo Costa Nova
Dubai World Cup* April 5 Meydan Hit Show
Kentucky Derby May 3 Churchill Downs Sovereignty
Preakness Stakes May 17 Pimlico Journalism
Belmont Stakes June 7 Saratoga Sovereignty
Metropolitan Handicap June 7 Saratoga Raging Torrent
Stephen Foster Stakes* June 28 Churchill Downs Mindframe
Haskell Stakes* July 19 Monmouth Park Journalism
Whitney Stakes* August 2 Saratoga Sierra Leone
Juddmonte International Stakes (turf)* August 20 York Ombudsman
Travers Stakes August 23 Saratoga Sovereignty
Pacific Classic* August 30 Del Mar Fierceness
Jockey Club Gold Cup* August 31 Saratoga Antiquarian
Pennsylvania Derby September 20 Parx TBD
Goodwood Stakes* September 27 Santa Anita Park TBD
Lukas Classic September 27 Churchill Downs TBD

*denotes "Win & You're In" race for Breeders' Cup Classic.

Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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Robert Criscola - Covers.com
Betting Analyst

Robert M. Criscola’s road to becoming a Covers publishing editor began with an internship at Metro New York, which eventually turned into a freelance job at MetroBet covering many sports from a wagering angle, including horse racing. He continued to focus on “The Sport of Kings” by writing for shapperdacapper.com, danonymousracing.com, and informer.fanxt.com before joining the team at the TwinSpires Edge in 2019 as a regular contributor and weekend editor. “Crisco” began writing game previews for Covers in 2022 and joined the editing team in 2023.

His best advice for sports bettors? Bet with your head, not over it.

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