ALCS : ORIOLES APPRECIATE HONEST WIN BALTIMORE 5, NEW YORK 3.

Byline: Tom Withers Associated Press 

A pair of two-run homers, a David Wells victory and no Little Leaguers causing trouble.

Just a nice, normal day at Yankee Stadium for the Baltimore Orioles.

Rafael Palmeiro hit one of those homers in the seventh inning Thursday, lifting Baltimore to a 5-3 victory over the New York Yankees to even the American League Championship Series at one win apiece.

Palmeiro's shot to right-center off loser Jeff Nelson snapped a 2-2 tie and gave the Orioles a reason to celebrate less than 24 hours after a possible win in Game 1 was stolen away by a 12-year-old Yankees fan.

Having earned a split in raucous Yankee Stadium, the Orioles will play the next three games in the best-of-seven series at Camden Yards. Jimmy Key will start Game 3 for the Yankees tonight against Mike Mussina.

``We should be going home 2-0,'' Palmeiro said. ``We'll take a split. That was the goal coming in. We're going home for three days, and we're playing a lot better at home, so I hope that our fans can get excited like the Yankee fans up here, you know, make it difficult on them.''

The Orioles had to overcome a rainout, profane jeers directed at second baseman Roberto Alomar and Jeff Maier, the 12-year-old who leaned over the right-field wall and interfered with Orioles outfielder Tony Tarasco in Game 1.

Tarasco got a little revenge Thursday by catching the final out in right field as Maier looked on - this time sitting with his family behind the Yankees' dugout.

``We put it behind us,'' Wells, who improved his career mark at Yankee Stadium to 10-1, said of the Game 1 loss. ``We had to. You can't worry about your last game, and that's what we did. We went out there and did our jobs.''

After the hoopla caused by Alomar's arrival and Maier's infamous non-catch, Game 2 was fairly nondescript. Just solid baseball.

With the score tied 2-2, Alomar doubled down the left-field line with one out in the seventh off Nelson. Palmeiro, who went 3-for-3 with a homer in Game 1, followed by hitting a 3-1 pitch over the wall in right-center.

Maier, who brought his glove, right fielder Paul O'Neill and 56,432 others could only watch as the towering drive left the field.

``It didn't matter,'' O'Neill said. ``It was way over the fence. There was no doubt about it.''

Wells pitched out of serious trouble in the fifth and sixth innings before leaving with runners at first and second in the seventh. The left-hander gave up eight hits over 6 2-3 innings.

Wells has special regard for Yankee Stadium and it's not because of his success there or the fans. He readily admits that Babe Ruth is his favorite player and his proudest possession is a 1930 Yankees team ball signed by Ruth and Lou Gehrig.

``My heart will always go out to this stadium,'' he said. ``This is a special place for me. Outside it's just chaos. I heard some things I've never heard in my life out there today warming up. But that's just New York fans trying to rattle you.''

The Orioles set a major-league record with 257 homers in the regular season and have continued their long-ball barrage in the postseason. Palmeiro's shot was Baltimore's 13th in six playoff games.

``Basically, that's the way we score,'' Baltimore manager Davey Johnson said. ``We don't do a lot of bunting or stealing or hitting behind the runner.''

The Yankees cut it to 4-3 in the seventh on Fielder's RBI single off reliever Alan Mills. But the Orioles got an important insurance run in the eighth on Alomar's sacrifice fly.

With Brady Anderson at third, Alomar lifted a ball down the right-field line that O'Neill caught in foul territory but couldn't make a play on Anderson.

The Yankees, who had rallied to win their previous four postseason games, threatened to come back again in the ninth. Jeter singled off Randy Myers and with one out Bernie Williams walked. Armando Benitez came on and got Fielder to pop up for the second out and got Tino Martinez on a routine fly ball to right for the save and end the 4-hour, 13-minute game.

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