Watch out for power of Rangers

The latest challengers to the throne looked a lot like the crown holders themselves Friday night, all decked out were the Texas Rangers in their bright red jerseys and caps.

It’s a color scheme that has worked well for the Angels, who, since adopting it in 2002, have won a World Series and four of the last five American League West titles.

Could the Rangers have the Angels seeing red this season?

Seattle was the flavor of the month in April, spending four weeks in first place before losing nine of 10 games through Thursday and sliding into third.

Now the Rangers lead the division, thanks to a torrid stretch that continued with Friday night’s 10-8 victory over the Angels in the Ballpark at Arlington.

Texas has won five in a row, 11 of 13 and 17 of 24 games to take a 2 1/2 -game lead over the Angels, but unlike the Mariners, these Rangers seem to have a little more staying power and could pose more of a threat.

For one, they have superior power, as they showed Friday, when they rocked Saunders, who threw his first career shutout in his last start, for three home runs, two by Ian Kinsler and one by Andruw Jones.

Josh Hamilton added a prodigious two-run blast off Shane Loux in the eighth, a shot into the middle of the upper deck in right field that traveled an estimated 460 feet, the third-longest homer in park history behind Paul Sorrento (491 feet in 1999) and Jose Canseco (480 feet in 1994).

The Rangers have 62 homers this season, compared with 27 for the Angels, and Kinsler’s 11 out of the leadoff spot would lead the Angels.

They have three players -- Kinsler, Hank Blalock and Chris Davis -- with 10 or more homers, and the only reason Hamilton has only five is that he sat out 2 1/2 weeks because of a rib-cage injury.

Texas is much improved defensively, thanks to the addition of flashy shortstop Elvis Andrus, Michael Young’s move from shortstop to third, and the addition of catchers Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Taylor Teagarden.

Andrus started a pair of double plays Friday, one with the bases loaded to end the second, and Kinsler made a backhand stop of Juan Rivera’s grounder and flipped the ball to Andrus with his glove hand to start a double play that got the Rangers out of a two-on jam in the eighth.

Kinsler also made a nice backhand stab of Howie Kendrick’s shot up the middle with two on in the ninth and flipped to second for a game-ending force play.

Hamilton showed off his gun from center field, nailing Kendrick, who was trying to score from second on Chone Figgins’ fifth-inning single, at home.

Pitching has always been the Rangers’ weakness, but Kevin Millwood is finally beginning to look like the ace Texas thought it was getting when it signed the right-hander to a five-year, $60-million contract before 2006.

Millwood gave up two runs and nine hits in six innings Friday night, striking out five and walking two, to improve to 4-3 with a 2.93 earned-run average.

Right-hander Vicente Padilla, who starts today, has a 2.60 ERA over his last four starts, and young left-hander Matt Harrison, acquired in 2007 from Atlanta in the Mark Teixeira trade, is 4-2 with a 4.23 ERA.

There are questions in relief, as was shown Friday, when the Angels rallied for five runs in the ninth, Bobby Abreu hitting a two-run double off Derek Holland and Kendry Morales a three-run homer off former Angel Darren O’Day.

But the bullpen should be bolstered by the return of closer Frank Francisco from biceps tendinitis. The right-hander, who hasn’t pitched since May 6, has not yielded an earned run in 14 2/3 innings.

“They played great baseball after the first six weeks of last season, and they’re a club that presents a lot of challenges,” Angels Manager Mike Scioscia said.

“They’re playing at a high level defensively, and we’re seeing some growth from their young players. They’re a heck of a team. You guys are the ones who say our division isn’t any good. It’s going to be a battle all the way through.”

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mike.digiovanna@latimes.com