ARLINGTON -- In a season that has seen more baseballs fly out of big league ballparks than ever, two teams have connected for more jaw-dropping drives than the rest. The Yankees and Twins are about to have the opportunity to see how their big-swinging lineups stack up in a postseason setting.

As they prepare to meet in the American League Division Series, New York and Minnesota are continuing to battle for the Major League home run lead. The Yanks grabbed the upper hand on Friday evening, slugging six home runs in a 14-7 rout of the Rangers at Globe Life Park.

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"It is fun to see the back and forth," Giancarlo Stanton said. "I know they were leading most of the year, so we've got to make sure they don't catch us. I think that's exciting for baseball. As a spectator, you want to see homers."

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And the Yankees continue to deliver. They now have 305 home runs, two more than the Twins. Stanton, Cameron Maybin and Brett Gardner went deep within the first four innings, helping the Bombers' bats surge to life following 18 straight scoreless innings against the Rays in St. Petersburg.

"We get excited when we hit homers, and obviously a lot of guys had some really good offensive nights," manager Aaron Boone said. "That usually leads to a little more of a raucous bench, especially coming off a couple of games where we didn't swing the bats real well."

James Paxton started for New York, but the left-hander experienced tightness in his left glute while warming up in the bullpen. Paxton threw just 21 pitches, allowing a two-run Danny Santana homer, and was lifted after one inning for precautionary reasons. Paxton said he could have continued pitching, and his focus will now turn to preparing to make his playoff debut in the ALDS.

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"I think I could have kept going, but they wanted to play it safe and have me completely rested for what comes next," Paxton said. "I don't think it's going to be anything serious. I could've kept on pitching and worked through it. They wanted me to play it safe."

With a parade of Yanks relievers posting zeros, including winning pitcher Stephen Tarpley, Stanton laced a two-run single in the fourth inning that opened the lead.

Gio Urshela led off the sixth inning with a homer, and Mike Ford slugged a two-run shot later in the frame. Austin Romine added a ninth-inning solo shot as the Yanks improved to 57-49 (.538) at this venue, the best record of any visiting club since it opened in 1994.

Mike King hurled two innings in his Major League debut, permitting an unearned run and two hits. Chance Adams surrendered homers to Scott Heinemann and Shin-Soo Choo in the ninth.

The Big G
Stanton's first-inning homer off Joe Palumbo was his third of the season and his second since being activated from the injured list. He finished 3-for-3 with a pair of walks, reaching base a season-high five times.

"I just shortened my swing up a little bit and tightened the zone," Stanton said. "Some of those pitches were outside of the zone, but I felt like I picked up the ball better today."

As he hones his timing, Stanton said he is not concerned about the layoff between Sunday's end of the regular season and ALDS Game 1, which will be played next Friday at Yankee Stadium.

"I think we'll get some live at-bats in there and just take BP and practice every day, do whatever I can," Stanton said. "I've been out long enough. I can figure out how to pick it up."

Milestone moment
DJ LeMahieu added a three-run double in the seventh inning, becoming the first Yankees infielder to reach 100 RBIs since Robinson Canó in 2013.

"I guess my whole career, I've been pretty envious of guys who can drive in 100," said LeMahieu, who has 102 RBIs. "I guess that means you are really helping the team. It's a good feeling, for sure."

LeMahieu's teammates applauded from the top step of the dugout, even after LeMahieu was tagged out at third base attempting to stretch the hit into a triple. The ball was retrieved as a keepsake.

"It's pretty special that everyone was excited about that," LeMahieu said. "I didn't know people were watching that number as closely as they were. That was pretty cool of my teammates. I appreciated that."

Boone said the Yankees' 103-win season -- their highest total since 2009 -- is due in large part to LeMahieu, who has hit safely in 13 consecutive games.

"They just try to attack him in every way and he finds the gap, finds the right-field wall, hits it over the wall," Stanton added. "Just an unbelievable hitter. We all love watching him hit."