Kentucky Derby 2019 odds: Baffert brigade holds top spots

In the wake of Wynn Las Vegas odds maker Johnny Avello's transition to DraftKings, there's a void in the market of available 2019 Kentucky Derby odds from domestic casinos. But the offshore gaming website Bovada.LV opened wagering this week on a number of promising 2-year-olds.

No surprise here: Bob Baffert's barn looks loaded again.

Baffert trains three of Bovada's top five choices led by Game Winner, the Breeders' Cup Juvenile hero listed as the early 8-1 Kentucky Derby favorite. The others are Coliseum and Improbable, both 20-1. The former is an un-raced Godolphin runner working consistently in California, while the latter won a stakes impressively on last weekend's Breeders' Cup undercard.

Top choices not in Baffert's care include Instagrand, the Grade 2 winner freshening up for a 3-year-old campaign. He's 16-1. Knicks Go, the Breeders' Cup Juvenile runner-up, is 20-1.

Among others on the list, Baffert also trains maiden winners Mucho Gusto (25-1), Roadster (25-1), Tale of the Union (33-1) and Magic On Tap (40-1).

But also, about Bovada: It is an unregulated offshore entity that doesn't operate under the same laws as domestic, brick and mortar casinos. As opposed to when you bet into pari-mutuel pools, money here doesn't go back to horsemen either as it will later this month when Churchill Downs hosts the first pool of its official Kentucky Derby Future Wager.

The list of wagering interests, though, checks out, with some potential value available on a few horses in particular.

Shug McGaughey-trained Code of Honor scratched from the Breeders' Cup Juvenile the morning of the race due to a fever. He's well-regarded, but lightly tested and remains 33-1. Meanwhile, Maximus Mischief, who owns the crop's top Beyer Speed Figure and has looked like a monster at Parx Racing, sports the same price. Royal Marine, a Group 1 winner on the grass, could take the UAE Derby route to Churchill Downs, and he's 40-1.

The full list of opening prices from Bovada.LV:

Game Winner                8/1

Instagrand                    16/1

Coliseum                      20/1

Improbable                    20/1

Knicks Go                     20/1

Rowayton                     20/1

Complexity                    25/1

Endorsed                      25/1

Mucho Gusto                25/1

Roadster                       25/1

US Navy Cross             25/1

Vekoma                        25/1

Aurelius Maximus          33/1

Cairo Cat                      33/1

Call Paul                       33/1

Code Of Honor              33/1

Dream Maker                33/1

Fortin Hill                      33/1

Frosted Ice                    33/1

Gunmetal Gray              33/1

King For A Day              33/1

Maximus Mischief          33/1

Mucho                          33/1

Network Effect              33/1

Preamble                      33/1

Signalman                    33/1

Strike Silver                  33/1

Tale of the Union         33/1

Dueling                         40/1

Epic Dreamer                40/1

Magic On Tap               40/1

Mind Control                 40/1

Nitrous                          40/1

Quick Entry                   40/1

Royal Marine                 40/1

Sombeyay                    40/1

Standard Deviation        40/1

Trophy Chaser              40/1

Tobacco Road               66/1

Whiskey Echo               66/1