Scratches, horse deaths, trainer suspension: What we know before the Kentucky Derby

It's been a baffling Kentucky Derby week for horse deaths, injuries and race scratches at Churchill Downs.

Four entries for the 149th Kentucky Derby have scratched from the field, one more than the maximum number of scratches that can occur before Friday's 9 a.m. deadline to be replaced by horses from the also-eligible list.

Practical Move, Lord Miles, Continuar and Skinner are all out of the Run for the Roses. Lord Miles' scratch comes as a result of trainer Saffie Joseph Jr.'s indefinite suspension from Churchill Downs amid investigations into the the deaths of two of his other horses, announced by the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission and the Board of Stewards on Thursday.

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Meanwhile, four non-morning line Derby entrants have died since April 27.

Here's what we know about the recent horse ailments at Churchill Downs:

Why did Skinner scratch from the Kentucky Derby?

The most recent scratch in the Derby field is Skinner, himself a scratch replacement after Derby contender Wild On Ice was euthanized last week.

The John Shirreffs-trained Skinner was removed from the race Friday morning due to an elevated temperature.

The already dwindling field will not get a replacement for Skinner seeing as Friday's 9 a.m. deadline has passed. Skinner was set for post position No. 9 in the Derby.

Why did Continuar scratch from the Derby?

Continuar narrowed the Japanese entries in the Derby from three to two horses with his scratch Thursday evening.

An invite via the Japan Road to the Kentucky Derby, Continuar was scratched by trainer Yoshito Yahagi after he said he felt his 3-year-old was unable "to reach the peak fitness required" to race in the Derby.

“Considering the future of the horse and the fact that we cannot show the horse’s true ability in his current state, we have decided to scratch Continuar from the Kentucky Derby," Yahagi said.

King Russell, trained by Ron Moquett, moves into the race at the No. 20 spot.

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Why did Lord Miles scratch from the Derby?

The non-injury scratch from Saturday's Derby is Wood Memorial winner Lord Miles, trained by Joseph. He was scratched with Joseph Jr.'s suspension Thursday afternoon.

“For the betterment of racing, the health and welfare of our equine athletes and the safety of our jockeys, all horses trained by trainer Saffie Joseph Jr. are scratched effective immediately and until further notice,” the Board of Stewards wrote in a news release. “This action is taken after consultation with Mr. Joseph and includes Lord Miles, who was entered into the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby.”

Two of the four horses that have died at Churchill Downs this past week were trained by Joseph.

More: Lord Miles scratched from Kentucky Derby after deaths; Churchill Downs suspends Saffie Joseph

Mandarin Hero, trained by Derby first-timer Hiroaki Arai, takes Lord Miles' spot in the field. Mandarin Hero will take the No. 19 spot in the Derby.

Why did Practical Move scratch from the Derby?

Winner of the Santa Anita Derby and a Tim Yakteen trainee, Practical Move was scratched from the Derby field Thursday morning with an elevated temperature.

Practical Move was the co-fourth choice with Derma Sotogake at 10-1 odds in the Kentucky Derby morning line.

Cyclone Mischief, trained by Louisville's Dale Romans, will replace Practical Move, taking the No. 18 post position in Saturday's race.

What happened to Wild on Ice, Take Charge Briana, Parents Pride, Chasing Artie?

Four horses not included in Monday's Derby post position draw have died since April 27 at Churchill Downs, which opened its spring meet on Saturday.

Derby hopeful Wild On Ice had to be euthanized after a training accident April 27.

The Texas-bred horse suffered a left hind leg fracture and was euthanized upon further evaluation and transportation to a Lexington equine surgical facility.

Skinner moved into the field in Wild On Ice's place before being scratched himself Friday morning.

Three non-Derby hopefuls have also died, the first being 3-year-old filly Take Charge Briana. A "catastrophic injury" suffered in Tuesday's fifth race led to her euthanizing.

Two Joseph-trained horses both collapsed and died under similar circumstances. The former was Parents Pride after April 29's eighth race, and the latter was Chasing Artie after Tuesday's eighth race.

Churchill Downs called the deaths of Parents Pride and Chasing Artie “highly unusual" and rationalized Joseph's subsequent suspension with a call for utmost caution.

“Given the unexplained sudden deaths, we have reasonable concerns about the condition of his horses and decided to suspend him indefinitely until details are analyzed and understood,” said Bill Mudd, President and Chief Operating Officer of Churchill Downs Inc. “The safety of our equine and human athletes and integrity of our sport is our highest priority. We feel these measures are our duty and responsibility.”

“Something’s not right,” Joseph said. “These horses, it wasn’t because of injury. They left the gate and didn’t even try and then dropped down. … Theories aren’t going to help. We need facts."

Joseph said Parents Pride and Chasing Artie had been stabled at Keeneland before shipping to Churchill Downs. Before the KHRC's ruling Thursday afternoon, Joseph had scratched several horses set to run Thursday, Friday and Saturday who also had been stabled at Keeneland before shipping to Churchill.

"If there is something going on over there like contamination — or we don't know what it is — some virus or something, we don't know," Joseph said Thursday morning. "We have no answers. I mean, there's a lot of questions. There's a lot of thoughts, but there's nothing right now."

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Reach reporter Caleb Wiegandt at cwiegandt@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @CalebWiegandt. Reporters Jason Frakes and C.L. Brown contributed.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky Derby: Horses scratched, trainer suspended at Churchill Downs