Kentucky Derby 2019 Odds: Early Look at Vegas' Lines for Each Horse in Field

Horse racing is a year-round business, but for many fans, the season begins with the Kentucky Derby and the start of the Triple Crown.

The most glamorous event in the sport is held every year on the first Saturday in May, and this year's runners will go to the post in the 1 1/4-mile Run for the Roses with the hope of matching Justify's victory in last year's Derby.

That horse went on to win the Triple Crown and became the second horse in four years to come away with the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes in a little over a month of demanding racing.

Here's an early look at the odds for the 20-horse field.

Horse, trainer, jockey, odds

1. Tacitus, Bill Mott, Jose Ortiz, 12-1

2. Omaha Beach, Richard Mandella, Mike Smith, 3-1

3. Vekoma, George Weaver, Javier Castellano, 30-1

4. Plus Que Parfait, Brendan Walsh, Ricardo Santana Jr., 100-1

5. Roadster, Bob Baffert, Florent Geroux, 7-2

6. By My Standards, Bret Calhoun, Gabriel Saez, 20-1

7. Maximum Security, Jason Servis, Luis Saez, 5-1

8. Game Winner, Bob Baffert, Joel Rosario, 6-1

9. Code of Honor, Shug McGaughey, John Velazquez, 14-1

10. Haikal, Kiaran McLaughlin, Rajiv Maragh, 80-1

11. Improbable, Bob Baffert, Irad Ortiz Jr., 5-1

12. War of Will, Mark Casse, Tyler Gaffalione, 25-1

13. Long Range Toddy, Steve Asmussen, Jon Court, 60-1

14. Tax, Danny Gargan, Junior Alvarado, 60-1

15. Cutting Humor, Todd Pletcher, TBA, 40-1

16. Win Win Win, Michael Trombetta, Julian Pimentel, 30-1

17. Country House, Bill Mott, Flavien Prat, 80-1

18. Gray Magician, Peter Miller, Drayden Van Dyke, 100-1

19. Spinoff, Todd Pletcher, Manny Franco, 30-1

20. Master Fencer, Japanese qualifier, Koichi Tsunoda, Julien Leparoux, 100-1

Horses ranked in KentuckyDerby.com order; odds courtesy of Sportsline.com.

Omaha Beach is the early Kentucky Derby favorite and is likely to remain in that position when post positions are assigned in the race.

Omaha Beach is trained by Richard Mandella and ridden by veteran Mike Smith, and the colt comes into the Derby after a victory in the Arkansas Derby.

Mandella worked out Omaha Beach over the weekend, and the horse went five furlongs in 59 seconds. Julian Leparoux tried to keep Omaha Beach from extending himself too much by keeping a tight hold on his horse, but he still outkicked running mate Cowboy Karma by five lengths.

The trainer liked what he saw from his charge as he prepares for the Derby. "I just wanted him to have one more good work; that’s all he needed," Mandella said, per John Cherwa of the Los Angeles Times. "He got it today. They were supposed to go off together, but it all worked out fine. He went and got him. I really liked that he settled right down after the work."

Roadster, Improbable and Game Winner are all trained by Bob Baffert, and that means that all three horses will garner strong consideration to win the race. Baffert trained Justify a year ago, and he has five Kentucky Derby victories to his credit.

Improbable arrived at Churchill Downs prior to his stablemates, and he has nearly the same ownership as Justify did a year ago. Winstar Farm co-owner Elliott Walden understands how Baffert likes his horses to compete in the huge 20-horse field.

"I do know that Bob feels like you do have to get out of the gate well, feels like you need to get into a rhythm," Walden said. "And, you know, Improbable’s strength is his stride, so I think he does want him to get in a nice rhythm and not have too many obstacles in his path."

War of Will is also coming off a strong workout at Churchill Downs, breezing four furlongs in 47.60 seconds. War of Will has won a pair of stakes races in the LeComte and Risen Star in his run-up to the Kentucky Derby.

Trainer Mark Casse is enthusiastic about what he has seen from his charge. "What you got to see this morning, if you weren’t impressed with him this morning, I don’t know what we’re supposed to do," Casse said over the weekend. "But I’ve been seeing this for a long time."

Post positions and track odds will be assigned Tuesday, and Derby preparations will continue to ramp up at that point.