By ED GOLDEN

Bob Baffert has the horses as he goes for his second Kentucky Derby victory in three years.

Sure, the Derby is four months away, but Baffert, who won the world�s most famous race last year with Silver Charm and missed by a nose with Cavonnier in 1996, already is mapping strategy.

"Real Quiet has shown he�s Triple Crown quality," Baffert said of the Hollywood Futurity winner, who could go next in either the Golden Gate Derby on Jan. 18 or the Santa Catalina Stakes on Feb. 1. "Souvenir Copy is coming back great. I�ll run him in the San Vicente on Feb. 7, just like we did with Silver Charm last year.

"Commitisize (winner of the Hollywood Prevue) will go in the San Miguel on Saturday. I�m not sure he�s going to like a distance of ground, but I know he�s a good horse. Indian Charlie (who worked five furlongs on Dec. 31 in a bullet :58 2/5, breezing, the best of 39 drills at the distance) is coming back unbelievable. If he stays together, there�s no telling how good he is. He could be the best of the lot.

"I think Real Quiet, Souvenir Copy and Indian Charlie are my �A� team. But I�ve got other prospects, like My Favorite Place, Tahoe Prospect, Shot of Gold, Pleasant Drive and Hot Wire. My Favorite Place is coming back great and Tahoe Prospect is only going to get better. Hot Wire fell way behind in his training, so we�re bringing him along, but we�re not going to push him. If he makes the Derby, OK, but there�s always the Preakness and the Belmont. I�m not going to push any of my 3-year-olds. I�m bringing them along at their own pace. If they make it, OK. If they don�t, we skip. We�re still sorting them out."

Baffert has tremendous respect for Favorite Trick, the undefeated 2-year-old champ who buried Souvenir Copy and yet another Baffert prospect, the sidelined Johnbill, in the Breeders� Cup Juvenile for his eighth win in eight starts.

"That little horse is just a freak of nature," Baffert said of the son of Phone Trick. "He was managed beautifully, but I still think when we start going a mile-and-an-eighth, down the line, these horses will run him over -- I hope. I still think we can do it."

GOLDEN PICKS

AVENA -- Found his zone in maiden route win. Enough in tank for repeat.

COZAR -- Ran too good to lose in debut. Should leave maiden ranks pronto.

DEL MAR DANCER -- Ran huge in turf debut at 22-1, found home on grass.

DOUBLE DIAMOND -- Turf specialist failed to fire during troubled trip. Deserves another chance against high-priced claimers or allowance foes.

ELITE FEET -- Spotted field several lengths at start but mowed �em down late. Should only improve from first out in13 months.

LADY TAP -- In fine fettle now, gobbled up ground in final 16th to be second despite traffic. Can get up at six furlongs or beyond, but don�t expect 23-1 next time.

ON THE ROCKS -- Caught the eye on the track and the fancy of bettors at the windows in $10,000 claiming win, should return dividend quickly for new barn.

SANDY SHANE -- Claiming maiden spotted foes too many lengths after tardy start, still ran second when much the best.

THE HOMESTRETCH: Even though Patrick Byrne has accepted a position as private trainer for industrialist Frank Stronach, Byrne could still be retained as conditioner of Favorite Trick if a deal can be finalized. Stronach reportedly was negotiating with Favorite Trick�s owner, Joseph LaCombe, to buy a share of the colt, which would enable Byrne to continue as trainer. "It was a difficult decision," Byrne said of his departure from Favorite Trick and Countess Diana, "but when you have a Mr. Stronach behind you, every year you could have another Favorite Trick." Byrne�s deal is for five years with a "very good base salary," plus a percentage of his horses� earnings and breeding shares included. An insider estimated the annual salary to be worth $750,000 . . . Richard Mandella, who saddled the first three finishers in the 1997 Santa Anita Handicap, could top that with a 1-2-3-4 sweep on March 7. "Refinado Tom and Gentlemen are possible for both the San Antonio Handicap (Feb. 7) and the Big �Cap," said Mandella, who also has Brazilian Invitato Mio and Chilean Malek as Big �Cap candidates. "I might take something to Florida for the Donn Handicap (Feb. 7)." Mandella on the new surface installed on Hollywood�s main track: "It�s very exciting to learn if we�ve got materials that would make tracks safer and keep horses sounder. That�s our goal. From everything we�ve seen (on the surface that�s been used since last March on Hollywood�s training track), it was so much better than any main track we�ve used. It�s very consistent and handles rain better. It�s also very easy to maintain and doesn�t require deep digging. That leads to better consistency.". . . Laffit Pincay Jr. will ride out the current Santa Anita meet before contemplating a permanent move to northern California. "There are a lot of things I have to do before I would leave," said the 51-year-old Hall of Famer in pursuit of Bill Shoemaker�s career record of 8,833 wins. "I�m buying a new house and selling my old one. The time just isn�t right to make a move, but I�m still considering going." Through Jan. 3, Pincay had 8,573 victories, 260 behind Shoe . . . A Santa Anita record was set when trainer Matt Chew claimed Dreamer for Nick and Nicholas Jr. Sibilos, who paid $125,000 for the 5-year-old son of Zilzal. "We�d been looking at Dreamer since Del Mar when he ran for $100,000," said Chew. "I didn�t have anybody willing to step up to the plate (at that time) for that amount. With purses as high as they are, Dreamer looks like a solid investment. Plus (previous trainer) Neil Drysdale has a reputation for taking good care of a horse. He�s not going to throw a crippled horse at you. He only runs them when they�re in perfect condition." Chew plans to enter Dreamer in the Feb. 21 San Marino Handicap, a race he won last year . . . Hard-luck Goncalino Almeida is recovering from four broken ribs, a punctured lung and a hairline fracture in his right foot suffered in a Ben Hur-type spill on Dec. 30. The 41-year-old jockey was expected to be released from Arcadia Methodist Hospital soon after the mishap, but was detained for what could be an unannounced problem with his heart, and I don�t mean his courage . . .Trainer Ted West, whose barn has been winning at better than 30 percent, was slapped with a $300 fine for over-use of bute on A Low Spruce, second at Hollywood on Dec. 4 . . . Corey Nakatani also was hit with a $300 fine, for causing welts with his whip on Elite Feet, who won on Jan. 2 . . . Baffert�s post-race quote on Silver Charm�s defeat in the Malibu drew a piece of critical mail. "McCarron had him pinched in and they were all looking at him saying, �We got him,�" Baffert said after the race. It prompted this anonymous letter: "Dear Bob Baffert: Do you honestly think that Chris McCarron is so hungry for wins that he deliberately pinched your horse? Do you really think Lord Grillo, coming from way out of it on the outside, didn�t run good enough to beat Silver Charm? I thought you were a better loser than that." Moaned Baffert: "That�s the only negative letter I got all year."