Preakness Stakes 2023 contenders, horses, field, lineup, odds: Expert who nailed prep races gives picks

Trainer Bob Baffert has won the Preakness Stakes seven times during his career and will return from a two-year ban on Saturday for the 2023 Preakness Stakes. His horse, National Treasure, will be ridden by Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, who is still seeking his first-ever Preakness win. National Treasure has the second-highest single-race Beyer Speed Figure in the 2023 Preakness Stakes field (97), showcasing his speed with a win at Del Mar last year. Should you include him in your 2023 Preakness Stakes bets? Mage is the 8-5 favorite in the 2023 Preakness Stakes odds, while National Treasure has the second-shortest odds at 4-1. There are only seven 2023 Preakness Stakes horses, with Mage being the only one who also raced in the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago.

Post time is 7:01 p.m. ET. With several new horses taking their shot at the Kentucky Derby winner, you'll want to see what SportsLine writer Gene Menez has to say before making any 2023 Preakness Stakes picks.

A former reporter and editor at Sports Illustrated, Menez covered an array of sports, including horse racing, for the magazine and its website for almost 14 years. Between 2010 and 2012, he served as SI's handicapper for the Triple Crown races and correctly predicted Super Saver to win the Kentucky Derby in 2010. In 2015, while writing for Sports on Earth, Menez accurately gave out the Kentucky Derby superfecta (American Pharoah, Firing Line, Dortmund and Frosted), which paid $1,268.20 for $2. Then in 2017, he tweeted out his Kentucky Derby picks, including Always Dreaming to win, and hit the Pick 4, which paid almost $6,900 on a $1 bet.

On Dec. 26, Menez hit the Pick 5 at Santa Anita Park. In a span of seven races, he cashed the winner of the Lecomte Stakes, the exacta in the Southwest Stakes, the winner of the Holy Bull Stakes, the winner of the Sam F. Davis Stakes, the place horse of the Rebel Stakes, and the trifecta in the Jenny Wiley Stakes. Anyone who has followed his lead is way up.

Now, he has handicapped the 2023 Preakness Stakes lineup, made his picks and constructed his bets. You can only see them here.

Top 2023 Preakness Stakes expert predictions

One surprise: Menez is fading Mage, even though he is the Kentucky Derby winner and 8-5 Preakness favorite. The perception around Mage has flipped over the past two weeks after he entered the Kentucky Derby as a longshot. He rallied from 12 lengths to stun the wide-open field, using his elite closing speed to win the first jewel of the Triple Crown.

Mage is the default 2023 Preakness Stakes favorite on Saturday, but the only favorite to win the Preakness in the last seven tries was Justify in 2018. The short turnaround is a concern for Mage, especially since he is facing a rested 2023 Preakness Stakes field. Given the recent history that points to the favorite struggling in the second jewel of the Triple Crown, Menez believes Mage's price is too short to consider. See which 2023 Preakness Stakes horses he is backing at SportsLine.

How to make 2023 Preakness Stakes bets

Instead, Menez's top pick is a horse who's "sitting on a big race." He also is high on another horse who "has a big chance" to come through for his backers at Pimlico. He's sharing which 2023 Preakness horses to back only at SportsLine.

So who wins the Preakness Stakes 2023? Which horse is a must-back, and how has Menez constructed his wagers? Check out the latest 2023 Preakness Stakes odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Menez's picks for the Preakness Stakes, all from the expert who has crushed prep races.