You said "Don't these numbers tend to support the belief that, if Desormeaux can't win, he doesn't care where he finishes."
Like I said before, those numbers are like a squirt of piss in a very large bucket.
Last year, Desormeaux had more 3rds than wins or seconds at Saratoga. Same in 2006.
As far as if it's a bum wrap or not .. I don't know. I think Desormeaux rolls the dice a hell of a lot more than other jockeys. He takes a lot chances that might slightly improve his chances of winning ... but also might backfire and blow up in his face.
Take a look at his ride on Hold Me Back in the Derby or Summer Bird in the Haskell among so many .. if he rode his race on those horses - he had to feel like he had zero shot of winning.
For this decade ... Desormeaux is 604-97-75-81 with a $2.09 ROI in all rides at Saratoga.
A 4.5% percent profit .. but from only just over 600 rides. 600 races is still a very small number for a sample size ... Scav probably bets on that many races in a Mountain Dew fueled busy week of betting.
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