2026 Tampa Bay Downs morning line odds: Racing writer gives Pick 3 selections for March 7

Saturday is Tampa Bay Derby day at Tampa Bay Downs in Oldsmar, Fla., and there's a Pick 3 that begins with the Hillsborough Stakes at 4:29 p.m. ET and ends with the Tampa Bay Derby. Before you make any picks, you NEED to know how SportsLine writer Gene Menez has handicapped the sequence considering what he pulled off last week.

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. In 2024, Menez gave out 18-1 Mystik Dan as a live longshot in the Kentucky Derby.

Menez excels on horse racing's biggest days. In 2024 he crushed the late Pick 4 on Breeders' Cup Saturday for a $5,303 windfall. Last year he nailed the winner, trifecta and superfecta in the Florida Derby for a $529.60 score and the winner and trifecta in the Blue Grass Stakes for a $761.96 jackpot. He hit the late Pick 4 on Kentucky Oaks day for $915.48. In the Kentucky Derby, he hammered the exacta and trifecta for a $1,045 payout.

And just last week he struck big on Fountain of Youth day, hitting the late Pick 5 for $4,648.

Last year Menez put his handicapping skills up against the best horseplayers and finished 115th out of 643 entries in the Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge, the biggest live-money handicapping tournament in the country.

For Saturday, Menez has handicapped the Pick 3 beginning with the Hillsborough Stakes, made his picks and constructed his tickets. We can tell you that Menez is high on Child of the Moon, a 5-1 shot in the Hillsborough, the first leg of the Pick 3. "Child of the Moon returned from a 14-month layoff to finish a good second one month ago at Gulfstream Park," he tells SportsLine. "Prior to her layoff she was a listed stakes winner on the grass in New York. She is eligible to improve in her second start off the layoff for trainer Chad Brown." Child of the Moon is Menez's top pick in the Hillsborough Stakes and an A horse on his Pick 3 tickets.

In addition, Menez is high on a double-digit longshot on Saturday. This horse "should be the one to catch" and could spice up the payouts. Menez is including this horse on his tickets, and so should you. You NEED to see Menez's analysis before making any selections.

So which double-digit longshot can win? And how has Menez constructed his tickets? ... Join SportsLine now to get selections at Tampa Bay Downs for Saturday, all from the horse racing writer who finished 115th in the 2025 Breeders' Cup Betting Challenge and hit the late Pick 5 at Gulfstream last week for $4,648.