LAKELAND, Fla. -- Miguel Cabrera is a former Triple Crown winner trying to prove he’s back. Travis Demeritte is a former Braves prospect trying to prove he belongs. They had something in common on Thursday -- two home runs apiece in two innings off Gerrit Cole.

Not only did Demeritte and Cabrera hit back-to-back home runs twice off the Yankees' ace, they did so on consecutive pitches each time, fueling a 15-11 win for the Tigers on a hot, humid and breezy Thursday afternoon at Joker Marchant Stadium.

The two teams combined for 11 home runs, nine of which came from Detroit hitters. The Tigers' nine home runs mark the most by any team in a Spring Training game since Detroit also hit nine against the Braves on March 4, 2012, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Cabrera and Demeritte stole the spotlight on a day when the Tigers lined up three of their top pitching prospects -- Casey Mize, Alex Faedo and Matt Manning -- to face the Yankees. After Mize retired the top of the Bronx Bombers' lineup in order on 14 pitches in the top of the first, the Tigers posted three runs before Cole could retire a batter.

After Victor Reyes doubled to lead off the first, Demeritte connected with an offspeed pitch and pulled the ball onto the berm in the left-field corner for a two-run homer. Cabrera crushed Cole’s next pitch and cleared the berm just left of center field.

"That's as far as I've seen a ball go here in my time here," Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. "That ball went a long way."

The swing was classic Cabrera, a seemingly easy stroke off his back leg that sent the ball out in a hurry. It’s the swing Cabrera has worked hard to regain after having to alter it for his aching right knee midway through last season.

"He barreled that ball as hard as you could get it," Gardenhire continued. 

Demeritte and Cabrera both went deep off the batter's eye in straightaway center field the next inning, sending center fielder Mike Tauchman scrambling until he ran out of room.

Though the wind blowing out to center had Lakeland’s osprey flying wobbly toward their nests atop the stadium light towers -- not to mention the center-field television camera looking a bit shaky -- Cabrera’s first home run had enough power that it likely wouldn’t have mattered.

Demeritte had another two-homer game Monday, giving him four home runs this week as he tries to snag a spot in Detroit’s outfield. He hit three home runs over 48 games for the Tigers down the stretch last year after coming from the Braves' system in the Shane Greene trade.

Demeritte's chances seemed slim when the Tigers signed Cameron Maybin on Feb. 12.

"He's getting after it," Gardenhire said. "Even with two strikes, he's taking healthy hacks. I like what I'm seeing. I think he's come in here on a mission to try to make this ballclub. He had some rough times last year. He's going to strike out because he's going to swing big, but he can hit a baseball. That's why we brought him over here in the first place."

Getting that potential out of him is up to Demeritte, who said the adjustment was mental rather than mechanical.

“Just being consistent, giving myself the best opportunity to do damage,” Demeritte said. “Just working on getting to my power spot before contact and being able to do damage with pitches that I should do damage with.”

Cabrera, meanwhile, has three homers for the spring. He spent the first week of games working on his opposite-field swing, hitting nearly everything to right, but he seems to be working his way around to center field and his pull side.

"He looks good. He's feeling good,” Gardenhire said. “And we want to keep him that way."