Unbeatens Bayern Munich, Schalke clash

Soccer Betting Lines

09/15/2007 - Munich, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Bayern Munich will put its unbeaten mark on the line on Saturday against Schalke 04, the only other club in the Bundesliga that hasn't lost this season.

Although the league contenders haven't lost yet, the sides haven't gotten off to equal starts. Bayern Munich has accumulated 10 points in four matches and Schalke has just six.

With new signings Luca Toni, Miroslav Klose and Frank Ribery leading the way, Bayern Munich has three wins and a draw and has outscored its opponents 11-1. Toni and Klose each have three goals.

Klose will have to do something he hasn't done in six years to get his fourth goal, and that's score against Schalke. He last scored against Schalke while playing for Kaiserslautern in April of 2001.

If that trend continues, Bayern Munich may also have to look for someone other than Toni to find the back of the net.

Toni is nursing a thigh injury and his status for the game is in doubt. He did rejoin Bayern Munich on Monday and has been rehabbing the injury all week.

"Toni's injury was no secret," Bayern Munich manager Ottmar Hitzfeld said. "We have done everything in our capacity to get him fit."

Bayern still has plenty of firepower, though, and is unbeaten at home. Bayern Munich has yet to allow a goal in its two home matches.

Schalke's Kevin Kuranyi, who has taken a league-high 26 shots and leads the club with two goals, will try to change that Saturday.

Regardless of the score, neither team can let down until the final whistle. Both clubs have had a lot of success offensively late in games so far this season. Bayern Munich leads the league with four goals in the last quarter of its games and Schalke is second with three.

However, the teams have combined to allow just one goal in the last quarter of their games this season.

Schalke finished second in the league last year and could use a victory. With just one wins and three draws, the club has scored eight goals but also given up five.

On Friday, Borussia Dortmund got by Werder Bremen, 3-0, to open the Bundesliga week.

Also on Saturday, Stuttgart hosts Energie, Bayer Leverkusen hosts Bochum, Nurnberg hosts Hannover, Arminia Bielefeld hosts Rostock and Eintracht hosts Hamburg.

On Sunday, Duisburg hosts Hertha Berlin and Wolfsburg hosts Karlsruher.

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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.


Marlins could start season without No. 2 starter Johnson

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Foorida Marlins are preparing for the likelihood that right-hander
Josh Johnson won't be ready when the season starts April 2.

Grapefruit League action starts Wednesday, but Johnson, penciled in as the No. 2 starter, hasn't even thrown off a mound at full speed since September. He's experienced some soreness in his right forearm.

MySportsbook.com have the Marlins listed with baseball betting lines at +800 to win the NL East this season .

''You guys know the math. If he's not on the hill then he becomes an opening day roster issue,'' manager Fredi Gonzalez said Saturday. ''We're borderline now.''

Johnson, who finished 12-7 with a 3.10 ERA in 2007, was supposed to throw on flat ground Saturday. That was canceled when he woke up with pain.

He played catch on Wednesday with no pain but felt discomfort in a throwing session on Thursday. He's expected to try again Sunday.

''Like we always said from the very beginning, we're going to take it easy on him,'' Gonzalez said. ''He didn't feel right, so we shut him down. We're going to take it back to step one and see where we're at.''

Among the candidates to take Johnson's spot in the rotation are left-hander Chris George and right-handers Yusmeiro Petit and Jose Garcia.

Right-hander Sergio Mitre, who missed most of last season with arm and shoulder problems, also is behind.

With Johnson's status doubtful, Gonzalez said right-hander Ricky Nolasco will stay in the rotation and no longer will be considered a candidate for closer.

Additional basbeall odds can be found at: www.MySportsbook.com

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