Baldwin Avenue will be closed intermittently from 7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. Saturday, April 7, for the 18th Annual Santa Anita Derby Day 5K Run & Walk. Arcadia police recommend that alternate routes be used during this time period to avoid being detoured or delayed. Questions or concerns may be directed to Sergeant Jason Davis or the on-duty Watch Commander at the Arcadia Police Department, (626) 574-5156.
Meanwhile, retired Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens, a winner of a record nine Santa Anita Derbies, will throw out a ceremonial first pitch at Dodger Stadium today in advance of the Dodgers’ Freeway Series finale with the Angels.
Stevens was an honored guest at Santa Anita this morning at the Santa Anita Derby Draw Breakfast in the track’s FrontRunner Restaurant, hosted by radio personality Tim Conway Jr. “This is really awesome,” said Stevens. “I’m a big Dodger fan and I’m really honored by this. I’m going to bring my wife (Angie) and my little girl (Maddie) and we’re going to take a lot of pictures. It should be a great day!” Stevens who is currently working as a racing analyst with HRTV and NBC, won his first Santa Anita Derby in 1988, and later the Kentucky Derby on Winning Colors.
Stevens also won the Kentucky Derby in 1995 and in 1997, and had five other Triple Crowns wins, two in the Preakness and three in the Belmont, among his 4,888 career wins. He was a four-time winner of the Santa Anita Handicap and had eight wins in the Breeders’ Cup.
Stevens, 49, was inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 1997 and he retired on Nov. 27, 2005.