With Any Given Saturday fresh off an impressive win in the Dwyer, and Rags to Riches set to race in the July 21 CCA Oaks at Belmont Park, the path these Pletcher runners take through the summer will likely define the Saratoga season.

Invasor’s retirement and subsequent absence from a repeat effort in the Whitney has raised the 3-year-old stakes to crucial aspects of the Spa Meet. ‘Rags’ is targeting either the Alabama or Travers, and her destination may well be determined by the schedule of Any Given Saturday. Should Pletcher point Any Given Saturday to the Haskell as the place to earn a Grade 1 this summer, it could leave the Belmont winning filly as his bullet for the Mid-Summer Derby. Yet should AGS head to the Jim Dandy as a pre-cursor to the Travers, then Rags to Riches is more likely to surface to the Alabama.

Of course, with Curlin, Street Sense and Tiz Wonderful — who hasn’t been seen since last year — also expected at Saratoga this summer, the Travers will no doubt be the keystone of these fantastic six weeks.