MLB all-star Martinez Kentucky Derby-bound with King Guillermo

After King Guillermo scored a 49-1 upset Saturday in the Tampa Bay Derby (G2), his connections will owe $6,000 to nominate him for the Triple Crown series assuming they do so before the end of the month.

That fee shouldn’t be a problem given the man behind the stable name Victoria’s Ranch is the five-time MLB all-star Victor Martinez, who spent an emotional afternoon at Tampa Bay Downs.

During a career on the field with the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox and most recently the Detroit Tigers, the switch-hitting Martinez told TVG after the race there was “nothing close to this” experience.

“This is something else,” Martinez, nicknamed "V-Mart" during his playing days, said to TVG’s Matt Carothers while surrounded by family. “This is absolutely something else.”

Since retiring from baseball in 2018, the two-time Silver Slugger, who played catcher and designated hitter during his esteemed career, has lived on his property in Florida -- Victoria's Ranch.

King Guillermo is named after Martinez’s late father. His mother, Margot, was on hand for Saturday’s race, which punched the Uncle Mo colt’s trip to the 2020 Kentucky Derby.

“My mom taught me how to dream,” Martinez said. “She taught me dreams are for free. We believed in this horse, and he made our dream come true.”

Trained by fellow Venezuelan Juan Carlos Avila, King Guillermo paid $100.40 to win in what was the second-highest sum in the Tampa Bay Derby’s 40-year history behind Bold Southerner’s $179.40 in 1984.

This victory appeared, however, to be no fluke. King Guillermo was patient to sit just off the pace before uncorking a winning rally, distancing by 4 3/4 lengths at the wire. In second was Sole Volante, the last-out winner of the local Sam F. Davis Stakes (G3).

Samy Camacho, a Tampa Bay Downs regular also from Venezuela, rode King Guillermo to what was his second career victory. The first came on Nov. 2 at Gulfstream Park West in a one-mile race on the turf before King Guillermo finished third in the Nov. 30 Pulpit Stakes on the Gulfstream Park lawn.

“But we still believed his workouts on dirt were pretty amazing,” Martinez told TVG. “We’ve got nothing to lose, man.”

The 41-year-old appears all in on the racing game. He signed the $150,000 ticket last April at OBS’ sale of 2-year-olds in training for King Guillermo and said connections will discuss what comes in the immediate future.

Most Tampa Bay Derby winners run again before the first Saturday in May. Some also train up to the race.

“I was sleeping for 16 years in the big leagues,” Martinez told TVG. “Once I was trying to wake up, I found King Guillermo.”