Kagawa fires Dortmund past Hoffenheim

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01/28/2012 - Dortmund, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shinji Kagawa netted a pair of goals to lead Borussia Dortmund to a 3-1 win over Hoffenheim on Saturday at Signal- Iduna-Park, extending Dortmund's unbeaten run to 13 games.

Goals from Kagawa and Kevin Grosskreutz in the first half gave the home side a two-goal advantage at the break, which Kagawa extended with his second goal of the contest in the 55th minute.

Fabian Johnson's goal in the 63rd cut into the deficit, but there was no way back for the visitors at that point and they have now won only once in the past nine games.

Sebastian Kehl set up the first goal by swiping the ball from a Hoffenheim defender and playing it to Kagawa for a simple finish.

Grosskreutz made it 2-0 just after the half-hour mark when he stabbed home a cross from Jakub Blaszczykowski, while Grosskreutz and Kagawa combined on Dortmund's third goal with the Japanese midfielder applying the finishing touch.

Johnson's goal arrived eight minutes later for Hoffenheim, which has slipped to eighth during its poor run of form.

Bayern Munich 2, Wolfsburg 0

Munich, Germany - Bayern Munich used second-half goals from Mario Gomez and Arjen Robben to record a 2-0 win over Wolfsburg at the Allianz Arena on Saturday.

Bayern was looking to bounce back from a 3-1 defeat to Monchengladbach last time out but had to wait until the 60th minute to grab the lead as Gomez saw his header blocked, but followed up and scored from six yards on the rebound.

The points were then secured in stoppage time with a fortunate goal from Robben. Wolfsburg's Felipe Lopes cleared a shot off the goal line from Bayern's Ivica Olic, but his clearance struck Robben in the stomach and found its way over the line.

Bayern has won four of its last five league matches and remains level on points with both Dortmund and Schalke at the top of the table.

Schalke 4, Cologne 1

Cologne, Germany - Schalke came from a goal down at halftime to claim a 4-1 win at Cologne on Saturday, with two goals coming from Ciprian Marica.

Lukas Podolski surprised the visitors with a goal inside three minutes for Cologne, and it held up until the hour mark when Marica leveled the contest for Schalke.

The Romanian doubled his tally 12 minutes later to put Schalke into the lead, and things got worse for the hosts when Miso Brecko was hit with a red card in the 77th minute.

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar converted a penalty kick to make it 3-1 in the 78th, and Marco Hoger capped the scoring four minutes later to complete Schalke's fifth straight win.

Augsburg 2, Kaiserslautern 2

Augsburg, Germany - Augsburg and Kaiserslautern both remained in the bottom three on Saturday after playing to a 2-2 draw at the SGL Arena.

Marcel De Jong fired Augsburg in front after five minutes, but his opener was canceled out midway through the first half by a goal from Florian Dick, who found the back of the net again shortly after halftime to put the visitors in front.

Stephan Hain then leveled the contest for good in the 66th minute, preventing Kaiserslautern from leaving with all three points and holding the club to its fifth successive draw.

Augsburg moves off the bottom of the table on goal difference with the result, while Kaiserslautern remains in 16th.

Hamburg 2, Hertha Berlin 1

Berlin, Germany - Hamburg responded from its loss to Borussia Dortmund last time out by handing Hertha Berlin a 2-1 defeat at the Olympiastadion on Saturday.

The loss to Dortmund snapped a nine-game unbeaten run for Hamburg, but Marcell Jansen's goal midway through the opening half put the visitors into the lead before Mladen Petric doubled the advantage in first-half stoppage time.

Hertha was able to pull a goal back nine minutes from time through Pierre- Michel Lasogga, but it wasn't enough to prevent the home side's winless run from extending to eight games.

Werder Bremen 1, Bayer Leverkusen 1

Bremen, Germany - Werder Bremen and Bayer Leverkusen finished in a 1-1 draw at the Weserstadion on Saturday, keeping both sides at arms length from the top four teams.

Claudio Pizarro tallied the opening goal in the 29th minute when he brought down a cross from Tom Trybull and smashed the ball inside the right post.

But Leverkusen pulled level in the 57th when a corner kick from Michal Kadlec was headed home by Stefan Reinartz, with Bremen nearly snatching the win in the final 10 minutes as Markus Rosenberg's shot struck the post.

Bremen is five points back of fourth-place Monchengladbach while Leverkusen remains one point behind the home side.

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FOOTBALL BETTING

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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Barry Bonds Watch: Giants Slugger Says He'll Be Back

With only 21 home runs standing between him and Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds is indeed planning on coming back for more in 2007. At least, that's what his agent told the Los Angeles Times.

"Barry's going to play in 2007," Jeff Borris of Beverly Hills Sports Council told the Times on Tuesday. "I've had many discussions with Barry and he's going to play. My intentions are to see to it he's in a big-league uniform next season. Those are my marching orders."

Contract negotiations could get started as early as next week. Let's see which team has the deeper pockets. Will MLB baseball betting lines despite allegations of steroid use? Bet On It at www.MySportsbook.com .

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