Saratoga 100 years ago...

1919 was quite the year in sports for Saratoga Springs. Events in the Spa City garnered national attention, forever etching itself into sports history.....
The players;
 Harry Payne Whitney
 Henry Ford Sinclair
 Arnold Rothstein 

My last post, last year, was regarding fillies in horse racing, which I had mentioned the horse Regret, the first filly to win the Kentucky Derby (1915). Regret was owned by Harry Payne Whitney, who is the father of Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney, (CVW was Saratoga socialite Mary Lou Whitney's deceased husband, the Rt. 50 arterial is named after him). 
 A few years later, Harry Payne Whitney also owned a horse named Upset, and shocked the world by beating an undefeated horse named Man o' War. Cheerful stuff huh, Regret and Upset, I guess they actually shared stables. 

 Man o' War was purchased from Augustus Belmont at Saratoga yearling sales by Sam Riddle. Augustus Belmont had joined the Army at 65 and went to fight in France during WWI, hence the name, Man o' War. Sam immediately began to race the colt to favorable outcomes. Man o'War remained undefeated for 6 starts until the 1919 Sanford Stakes where Upset beat Man o' War by a half length. Man o' War came back to beat Upset a few weeks later, but this race was Man o'War's only loss, at a final career stat at 21 wins-1 loss.

 The term "Upset" remains to this day, meaning - a surprising victory by a person or team that was expected to lose.
 It should also be noted that both jockeys ( Knapp and Loftus) involved in the winning exacta were both suspended from racing and neither one ever did return to the saddle.

1919 World Series 

1919 also saw the establishment of The Brook casino by legendary mob boss Arnold Rothstein, who set up shop in Saratoga. He was instrumental in bringing the gangsters up here, such as Lucky Luciano, Bugsy Seigel, and Meyer Lansky just to name a few. Rothstein worked with a local mobster named Jules Formel and DA Andrus to get things done around this small town. Check out my entry on this gent right here; http://briefingsfromaspacitymetalhead.blogspot.com/2015/08/mob-boss-arnold-rothstein-marries-in.html 

Rothstein received a bet from Harry Payne Sinclair, (an oil baron who a few years later went to prison for the biggest gov't scandal of it's time) for $90,000 placed on the Chicago White Sox to win the 1919 World Series. Rothstein is rumoured to be the brains behind fixing the 1919 World Series. To everyone's dismay, including Sinclair, a huge "upset' occurred as the Reds won the series. It's known as the "Black Sox scandal" and there is a movie called "Eight Men Out'' that is about this happening.

Travers 1921

A few years later, 1921, Harry Payne Whitney entered his horse ''Prudery'' into the biggest race of the Saratoga meet, the Travers stakes. (Damn, that guy really had some choice horse names).  Prudery had just won the Alabama stakes and was of high class. No one would enter the field. Rothstein had caught word that Prudery was under the weather, but still the only entry. 

 Enter Rothstein and his horse Sporting Blood. Rothstein was not a gambler, per se, so he instinctually had to iron clad his endeavors. So, Rothstein had his cohort, Hildreth, (the same guy who helped him mastermind the win with the World Series, and win other earlier race meets against Harry Payne Whitney) enter a horse too, essentially just to spread the field/money, and draw heat off Sporting Blood.

  Hildreth got Grey Lag, a horse in his stable owned by none other than Harry Ford Sinclair, to enter the race. Grey Lag had just beat Sporting Blood, so betting odds went up for Rothstein's horse. Just before the race, they underhandedly scratched Grey Lag. Everyone quickly put their money on Prudery, dropping it's odds even more, and of course, bumping up Rothstein's horse's odds. Wouldn't you know, Sporting Blood wins by a 2 lengths.  

One can't help but wonder if Man o'War's sole loss was conspired to happen, namely by Mr. Big, Arnold Rothstein.