NEW YORK -- On Wednesday, Dellin Betances wobbled significantly in the ninth inning, loading the bases and turning a three-run lead into a one-run lead.

When manager Joe Girardi made the slow walk to the mound to get a replacement, Betances waved off his boss.

It didn't work.

After two days off, Betances was determined to clean up the mess even if he had to wait.

Betances succeeded in not only staying in the game but also finished off a 7-5 win over the Tampa Bay Rays as the New York Yankees ran their winning streak to six games Friday night.

"I wasn't coming out," Betances said. "I got myself in that situation. So I'm trying to do whatever I can to stay loose."

The third delay occurred after Betances allowed one-out singles to Kevin Kiermaier and Evan Longoria. He was one strike away from retiring Brad Miller but on a 2-2 count, play was halted again.

"I don't think I was going to come out," Betances said. "It was going to be a problem."

During the 51-minute delay, Betances stayed loose by stretching and using the bike during the delay and when play resumed, he struck out Miller, gave up an RBI single to Logan Morrison before ending his 10th save with a strikeout of Steven Souza Jr.

"We kept talking to him," Girardi said. "We kept him warm. We kept him riding the bike. It's nerve-wracking when you have to go through this."

The Yankees had Kirby Yates and James Pazos warming up in case things took a drastic turn for the worse like they did June 27 when a three and a half-hour rain delay prevented Aroldis Chapman from finishing a 6-5 win and turned into a 9-6 loss.

Instead, the Yankees held on, matched their longest winning of the season and won for the 12th time in 16 games. By being able to finish the save after the rain delay, Betances helped the Yankees (75-65) move one game back in the wild-card race and four behind in the AL East.

Before Betances finished it off, the Yankees built a 7-2 lead on Mark Teixeira's 11th career grand slam with two outs in the fourth. Teixeira was on base four times, scored on a wild pitch and his home run came shortly after the second delay.

"He gave us a huge night tonight, which was great to see," Girardi said of Teixeira.

Rookie Gary Sanchez also homered and threw out a runner from his knees in the third innings. Rob Refsnyder added an RBI single for New York, which is 23-13 since being sellers at the non-waiver trade deadline on Aug. 1.

Morrison and Steven Souza Jr. homered for the Rays, who have dropped five of six. Morrison and Bobby Wilson added RBI singles for Tampa Bay, which struck out 12 times and issued 11 walks.

"I've never seen anything like that but I liked the way we stayed in it," Souza said. "

New York's Michael Pineda allowed two runs and six hits in 4 2/3 innings. He nearly completed five innings but the Rays challenged a call on a double play, got it overturned and the right-hander did not qualify for the win.

Since official scoring rules prevented Pineda from getting the victory, Adam Warren (2-1) was awarded the win by pitching 1 1/3 scoreless innings.

Tampa Bay rookie Blake Snell (5-8) labored through 2 2/3 innings, allowing three runs and six hits en route to his third loss in four starts.

"I wasn't missing by a lot but it was enough to where it's not competitive."

The Yankees took a 1-0 lead two batters in when Refsnyder's double got past left fielder Corey Dickerson and drove in Jacoby Ellsbury, who had singled.

New York added two in the third when Sanchez sent a full count fastball from Snell over the center field fence and Teixeira scored on a wild pitch.

Tampa Bay cut the lead to 3-2 when Morrison and Souza homered with one out in the fourth. Morrison sent a 1-1 fastball into a suite above the second deck in right and Souza followed by lining a first-pitch breaking ball down the left field line.

Following a 21-minute rain delay, Teixeira made it 7-2 when he sent a 1-1 fastball from Kevin Jepsen into the New York bullpen beyond the right-center field wall.

NOTES: Friday marked the one-year anniversary of 1B Tyler Austin getting sent outright to Double-A Trenton after being designated for assignment off the 40-man roster. ... Tampa Bay INF Brad Miller (right elbow soreness) told manager Kevin Cash he was fine and was in the starting lineup at DH. ... The Yankees added a fourth left-hander to their bullpen by calling up Richard Bleier from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre. He was slated to start Game 4 of Scranton/Wilkes Barre's playoff series Saturday if necessary. ... Tampa Bay RHP Erasmo Ramirez is the first pitcher to allow walk-off home runs to a Yankee since Guillermo Hernandez in 1988. Ramirez gave up Austin's homer Thursday and LF Brett Gardner's blast April 23. Hernandez allowed game-ending home runs to Gary Ward and Claudell Washington on Sept. 9 and 11, 1988.