What to watch Wednesday: Caitlin Clark set to return for Fever, MLB best bets

The 2026 World Cup is on a one-day hiatus ahead of the quarterfinal round, but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty of sports action for fans and bettors to take in on Wednesday, including two important clashes on the diamond in Florida and a showdown on the hardwood on the West Coast.

Perhaps no MLB team is hotter than the Miami Marlins, who have won four in a row and seven of their last 10 heading into Wednesday's clash with the Seattle Mariners. The Marlins are now just three games back of the Atlanta Braves in the NL East, and occupy the final wild card spot in the NL. Miami's ace duo of Sandy Alcantara and Max Meyer have been on fire, and the lineup is clicking with the team scoring at least six runs in six of its last eight games.

Tampa Bay is hoping to create more separation between itself and the New York Yankees when the Rays host the Bronx Bombers for the third contest of their four-game set. The Rays used a four-run fourth inning in Tuesday's game to grab a 6-4 victory and maintain their four-game cushion in the AL East. The Yankees have managed to stay in the division hunt despite Aaron Judge remaining sidelined as the All-Star break nears.

Caitlin Clark is set to return for the Indiana Fever, who have won two in a row and seven of their last 10 games ahead of a matchup with the Los Angeles Sparks on Wednesday evening. Clark has missed the last two contests with a back injury, but she's listed as probable for this game on the official WNBA injury report. She's averaging 21.2 points and 8.2 assists per game this season, and has already appeared in more contests than she did a year ago. The Sparks have lost three in a row and will be without Cameron Brink and Kelsey Plum for this game.

The Mariners are -130 favorites on the consensus money line against the Marlins and the Rays are -120 favorites against the Yankees. The Fever are 7.5-point favorites against the Sparks. Below is a snapshot of what to watch and bet for Wednesday, July 8. All times Eastern

Time: 6:40 p.m. | Location: Miami | TV: MLB.TV | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

SportsLine picks --  Model: Marlins +1.5 (-152) | Expert: George Kirby Under 5.5 strikeouts (Angelo Magliocca)

Miami will give the ball to Tyler Phillips (1-3, 3.52 ERA), who is coming off a rough effort where he allowed five runs in 3 1/3 innings. Phillips has surrendered 17 runs over his last four appearances, but the SportsLine model believes the Marlins can get to George Kirby (7-7, 3.81 ERA) as they cover the run line in 66% of simulations. Magliocca notes Kirby struggles to fan lefties and projects Miami to have seven left-handed batters in the lineup on Wednesday, so he's backing the Under on Kirby's strikeout number.

Time: 6:40 p.m. | Location: St. Petersburg, Fla. | TV: Prime Video, MLB.TV | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

SportsLine picks --  Model: Over 7

Gerrit Cole (3-3, 4.01 ERA) will take the mound for New York after delivering five strong innings in his last start. He was roughed up in the previous two appearances, giving up nine runs over 9 2/3 innings. The Rays give the ball to Shane McClanahan (7-5, 3.05 ERA) and he delivered six shutout innings against the Royals in his last start. Despite these two ace pitchers taking the mound, the SportsLine model sees the Yankees and Rays putting up more than 7 combined runs, with the Over hitting in 73.8% of simulations for a rare "A" grade.

Time: 10 p.m. | Location: Los Angeles | TV: USA Network, CNBC | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)

Clark averaged 23.2 points and 9.0 assists per game over her last five contests before missing time with a back injury. There's been a lot of discourse about WNBA officials and their treatment of Clark, but the Fever superstar has largely avoided the bait. Indiana is just two games back of the Las Vegas Aces at the top of the WNBA standings, and with Clark returning, there's a chance for this team to keep its winning run going. The Sparks are in a rut and without Brink or Plum, it's hard to envision them overcoming the Fever, even at home.

Time: Thursday, July 9, 4 p.m. | Location: Foxborough, Mass. | TV: Fox, Telemundo

SportsLine picks --  Expert: France money line (Matt Severance)

France are the favorites to win the 2026 World Cup ahead of the quarterfinal round, but they've first got to get past a familiar foe in Morocco. These two sides met in the 2022 World Cup semifinal, with France getting a 2-0 win over the Atlas Lions. Morocco have steadily climbed up the world rankings and bring back most of the squad that went on that semifinal run. Les Bleus are trying to get to their third straight World Cup final, and Severance expects them to move one step closer to that goal on Thursday. He notes they are "unbeaten in 12 straight competitive matches and have a 'Fab Four' of Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola", making them a tough side to beat.