Jayson Werth won a World Series title and several National League East division titles during his 15-year MLB career.
Now, he looks to become a winning horse owner at the 150th Kentucky Derby.
The 2008 World Series Champion with the Philadelphia Phillies is a co-owner of Dornoch, who will come out of the No. 1 post at Churchill Downs on Saturday in horse racing’s marquee event of the season.
Here’s what you need to know about Werth and Dornoch leading into Saturday’s Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs:
Who is Jayson Werth?
Werth is a retired Major League Baseball player who played for the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Phillies and Washington Nationals. A former Rule 5 draft pick, Werth’s career took off as a member of the Phillies from 2007-2010. He was a member of the Phillies’ 2008 World Series team, a season where he hit 24 home runs and batted .273 at the plate.
Werth, a former first-round pick of the Baltimore Orioles in the 1997 MLB Draft, hit a career .267 with a .455 slugging percentage and a .360 on-base percentage while recording nearly 1,500 hits (1,465) and 229 home runs.
As noted by The Philadelphia Inquirer, Werth got into horse racing in 2021 following a round of golf with friends in Florida:
“I played baseball for my whole life and then you stop playing baseball and you don’t have much to get excited about,” Werth told The Inquirer in March.
On Wednesday, he joined MLB Network’s “MLB Central” to talk about how he got into horse racing and what it’s like owning a horse.
“I never stressed out, I never worried about one (baseball) game as long as I lived,” Werth said. “Coming into a horse race, it’s like, I’m a nervous wreck.”
He added: “It’s like winning a postseason game when you win. It’s as big as it gets.”
“As a retired athlete, this sport fills a void. It checks a lot of boxes.”
Jayson Werth watches on as his Kentucky Derby horse DORNOCH schools in the Churchill Downs paddock. @Twoeightracing pic.twitter.com/EWnt5MR6Fa
— FanDuel Racing (Formerly TVG) (@FanDuel_Racing) May 2, 2024
Jayson Werth Kentucky Derby horse
As previously reported by the Courier-Journal, Werth is a co-owner of Dornoch alongside race horse management group Oracle Bloodstock. The two purchased Dornoch — the brother of 2023 Kentucky Derby champion Mage — in 2022 for $325,000. Werth told MLB Central that he is a 10% owner of Dornoch.
Dornoch Kentucky Derby odds
Per the latest odds from CBS Sports and USA Today, Dornoch enters the Kentucky Derby with 20-1 odds to win — which is tied for sixth-best odds with Mystik Dan, Just Steel, Honor Marie, Track Phantom, Stronghold and Resilience.
Dornoch is coming off a fourth-place finish at Blue Grass Stakes in early April. Here’s a full look at how Dornoch has performed in recent races:
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Maiden Special Weight (7/29/23 at Saratoga) — 2nd
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2023 Sapling (8/26/23 at Monmouth Park) — 2nd
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Maiden Special Weight (10/14/23 at Keeneland) — 1st
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2023 Remsen (12/2/23 at Aqueduct) — 1st
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2024 Fountain of Youth (3/2/24 at Gulfstream Park) — 1st
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2024 Blue Grass Stakes (4/6/24 at Keeneland) — 4th
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Jayson Werth Kentucky Derby horse: World Series champion owns Dornoch
