Yanks ‘hungry’ with postseason within reach

NEW YORK — As the Yankees watched the rain pelt the tarp in the ninth inning on Friday, needing two outs to move oh-so-close to postseason position, Dellin Betances gripped the ball tightly in his right hand. He wasn’t about to give it up.

It took until after midnight ET, but Betances got his wish, returning after a 51-minute rain delay to record the final outs of New York’s 7-5 victory over the Rays. The Yankees came this far to battle back into the race, and their closer wasn’t about to let someone else steal this moment.

“I don’t think I was going to come out there. It was going to be a problem,” Betances said.

Instead, Betances lathered his right arm with heating gunk and kept his blood pumping on a stationary bicycle before returning to whiff Steven Souza Jr. for the final out, securing the Yankees’ sixth straight victory and moving New York a season-high 10 games over .500 at 75-65.

They are improbably now just one game behind the Orioles and Tigers for the second American League Wild Card spot, two behind the Blue Jays for the first spot and four behind the Red Sox …

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