Travers 2017: Date, Post Positions, Saratoga Odds, Prize Money Purse and More

The celebrated month of horse racing at Saratoga Race Track in upstate New York will peak Saturday when the three winners of this year's Triple Crown races will meet in the Travers Stakes.

This year's $1.25 million race will include Kentucky Derby winner Always Dreaming, Preakness champion Cloud Computing and Belmont winner Tapwrit in the 12-horse field. The 1 ¼-mile race in Saratoga Springs, New York is scheduled for 5:44 p.m. ET, and it will be broadcast by NBC.

Tapwrit comes into the race as the 7-2 morning line favorite, according to BloodHorse.com, while the Bob Baffert-trained West Coast is the second choice at 4-1.

Always Dreaming comes into the race with odds of 6-1, while Cloud Computing has morning line odds of 8-1.

Here's a look at the full field for the Travers:

Post position, Horse, Trainer, Jockey, Odds

1. Cloud Computing, Chad Brown, Javier Castellano, 8-1
2. Giuseppe the Great, Nick Zito, Tyler Gaffalione, 20-1
3. West Coast, Bob Baffert, Mike Smith, 4-1
4. Tapwrit, Todd Pletcher, Jose Ortiz, 7-2
5. Good Samaritan, Bill Mott, Joel Rosario, 5-1
6. Girvin, Joe Sharp, Robby Albarado, 10-1
7. Always Dreaming, Todd Pletcher, John Velazquez, 6-1
8. Lookin At Lee, Steve Asmussen, Ricardo Santana Jr., 30-1
9. McCraken, Ian Wilkes, Brian Hernandez Jr., 12-1
10. Irap, Doug O’Neill, Mario Gutierrez, 8-1
11. Gunnevera, Antonio Sano, Edgard Zayas, 20-1
12. Fayeq, Kiaran McLaughlin, Luis Saez, 30-1

In addition to the winners of the Triple Crown races, the Travers will also feature Good Samaritan. That horse, trained by Bill Mott and ridden by Joel Rosario, beat Cloud Computing and Always Dreaming in the Jim Dandy Stakes in July.

While the horse of the year competition is wide open and probably won't be determined until the conclusion of the Breeders' Cup in the fall, the Travers could go a long way towards clarifying the contenders. 

McCracken, Girvin and Good Samaritan have all made strong cases in addition to Cloud Computing, Always Dreaming and Tapwrit. 

Julie Jacobson/Associated Press

This year's group of three-year-olds does not have a dominant superstar, but Aron Wellman of Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners believes the class has quite a bit of talent—Eclipse Thoroughbred Partners co-owns Tapwrit.

"From top to bottom in the Travers alone, you have some serious horses that have done some serious things. You look at McCraken, Girvin, Good Samaritan. I mean, forget about Cloud Computing, Always Dreaming, and Tapwrit. You've got incredible depth in this division. I think it really actually speaks to how good this class is and how many really good horses are in this class," Wellman said, per Alicia Wincze Hughes of Blood Horse.

The talent in the field indicates things could open up for the come-from-behind horses in the field. In that case, look for Baffert's West Coast to make a strong run around the far turn and down the stretch. He will still need to overcome the other late runners in the field, but a fast pace should give that horse and jockey Mike Smith a chance to win.