ELMONT, N.Y. — Rob Gronkowski the man was set to meet Gronkowski the horse Saturday, shortly before the Belmont Stakes contender went out and finished second to Justify in the final jewel of the Triple Crown.

A former trainer named Gronkowski after the New England Patriots tight end, because both the colt and the NFL star have tall, powerful frames. And Gronkowski the man added to the story when he bought a piece of the horse before a planned start in the Kentucky Derby.

Gronkowski the horse missed the Derby with a slight infection. He arrived at Belmont Park on a four-race winning streak, but because he’d never run on dirt or gone more than a mile, did not generate Patriots-level buzz as a serious contender.

Gronkowski the tight end was undaunted. “Hopefully if they named it after me, it’s just a beast of a horse, it’s fast and it’s ready to roll,” he told Sports Illustrated earlier in the week.

Trainer Chad Brown recently took charge of Gronkowski the horse, and as a Patriots fan, he was excited for the meeting of man and beast.

“Anytime we can bring some positive publicity to this great sport we work in, it’s a great thing,” Brown said.

“I really hope this horse has success tomorrow because I think it can be a great thing all around. To meet one of the all-time great tight ends is exciting for me and is a nice little perk.”

Promising start for Baffert and Smith: As jockey Mike Smith rode Abel Tasman to a commanding victory in the $750,000 Ogden Phipps Stakes, trainer Bob Baffert hoped he was watching a preview of Justify’s run in the Belmont.

The 4-year-old filly, one of Baffert’s favorite horses, certainly got his day off to the desired start. She first marked herself a star when she won the Kentucky Oaks last year, but she’d gone winless since July.

“You could tell today the light got turned on,” Baffert said, wearing the electric blue sport coat he favors for Triple Crown races. “I am so proud of her.”

Baffert later continued his perfect day, winning the $400,000 Brooklyn Invitational with Hoppertunity.

In the $700,000 Acorn Stakes, this year’s Kentucky Oaks champion, Monomoy Girl, added her seventh win in eight career starts.

She’s co-owned by former Johns Hopkins lacrosse player Sol Kumin, who also owns a minority share of Justify.

Maryland-bred Still Having Fun wins for Keefe: Maryland-bred 3-year-old Still Having Fun ran the race of his career to win the $400,000 Woody Stephens Stakes for Laurel-based trainer Tim Keefe.

Running outside of Maryland for the first time in eight career starts, Still Having Fun rallied from 8 lengths back at the half-mile mark to win the 7-furlong race as a 13-1 underdog.

“It feels great,” Keefe said of his first graded stakes win.”I was hoping it would coincide with my 500th win, too, but I’ll take it. This is great.”

He said co-owner Jim Scott of Terp Racing gave him money to buy a horse at the Timonium yearling sale, and he picked Still Having Fun for $12,000. “We just always hoped he was a nice horse,” Keefe said.

Bolt d’Oro fizzles: Once regarded as the likely favorite for the Kentucky Derby, Bolt d’Oro raced on the Belmont undercard and finished last in the $1.2-million Metropolitan Mile.

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