Yankees snap five-game skid on back of David Bednar’s gutsy save

ARLINGTON, Texas — There was not much to salvage from the Yankees’ road trip, but there is this: they will at least fly home still clinging on to a playoff spot with 47 games to go.

Had the Rangers finished off a sweep on Wednesday afternoon, they would have leapfrogged the Yankees for the last and final AL wild-card spot.

Instead, the Yankees’ bullpen got a late lead and hung on for dear life to avoid a winless road trip and remain locked into playoff position, at least for now.

David Bednar secured a five-out save on 42 pitches, leaving the tying run at second base, to lift the Yankees to a 3-2 win over the Rangers at Globe Life Field.

Bednar struck out the first two batters in the ninth before allowing a walk and a single, at which point Aaron Boone visited the mound with Camilo Doval (who had pitched on back-to-back days) warming in the bullpen. But Boone left Bednar in the game (at 35 pitches) and the ex-Pirate rewarded his manager’s faith by striking out Adolis Garcia to end it.

In relief of Carlos Rodón, Mark Leiter Jr., Tim Hill, Yerry de los Santos and Bednar combined to record the final 12 outs of a pressure-packed game the Yankees (61-54) desperately needed to have – especially coming off back-to-back games squandered by the bullpen, Devin Williams in particular.

Paul Goldschmidt had broken a tie in the seventh inning, delivering a pinch-hit home run to fend off the Rangers (60-56). Goldschmidt, pinch-hitting for Austin Wells against lefty reliever Robert Garcia, crushed his second home run in three games — both off lefties, whom he has crushed all season — after going 31 games without one.

Rodón lasted just five-plus innings, becoming the seventh straight Yankees starter that failed to record an out in the sixth inning — which has not helped a scuffling bullpen. The left-hander only gave up two runs, but scattered six hits and walked four — making it 15 free passes over his last four starts.

Leiter, making his first appearance in a month after going on the injured list for a left fibular head stress fracture, relieved Rodón and used a double play to get out of the sixth inning.

Hill came on for the seventh and got the first out before a single and a catcher’s interference on Ben Rice put a pair of runners on base. Hill then struck out Corey Seager, at which point Aaron Boone called on de los Santos. The righty walked Marcus Semien to load the bases before getting Adolis Garcia to fly out to escape the threat.

The Rangers struck first in the third inning as former Yankees prospect Ezequiel Duran (Joey Gallo trade) led off with a double off the left-field wall and Sam Haggerty drove him home with a single through the right side.

Rodón walked the next batter, Corey Seager, to flirt with trouble before getting Marcus Semien to ground into a big double play started by Ryan McMahon. Three pitches later, he was out of the inning, stranding a runner at third base.

The Yankees then took the lead in the top of the fourth with patient at-bats off Jack Leiter. Cody Bellinger led off with a walk, and Jasson Domínguez did the same one out later.

Anthony Volpe, Leiter’s best friend and former Delbarton teammate, came up next and roped a single to left field to tie it.

Volpe and Domínguez then pulled off a double steal with McMahon at the plate, and ex-Yankee Kyle Higashioka’s throw to third trickled away, allowing Domínguez to score for the 2-1 lead.

The Yankees had a chance for more, with runners on the corners and one out, but Rangers manager Bruce Bochy got aggressive and pulled the erratic Leiter for lefty Hoby Milner, who got two quick outs to end the threat.

Rodón threw a seven-pitch shutdown inning in the bottom of the fourth, but the Rangers got to him in the fifth to tie the game.