ROAD DOESN'T WORRY YANKEES.

Byline: Associated Press 

In all likelihood, Jacobs Field will not shake to the girders and have full cups of beer doing kamikaze dives from the upper deck. The New York Yankees can call it home, anyway.

As the AL division series shifts to Cleveland tied 1-1, the Indians must be wondering, ``What home-field advantage?'' New York is 15-5 at Jacobs Field, and the Yankees have hit Game 3 starter Charles Nagy hard every time they've faced him this season.

As far as Omar Vizquel is concerned, if the Indians held their own against New York in the zoo-like atmosphere of Yankee Stadium, they should be fine in their own park.

``I hope the fans will be crazy like New York, to tell you the truth,'' said Vizquel, 4 for 8 in the series with his slap 'n scoot style. ``They might get one of their players out of focus. We've got a good crowd. I think they deserve a championship.''

This intriguing matchup of age-old rivals - from real life in the golden 1950s to the movie screen in the '80s - got even more interesting with Cleveland's comeback victory in Game 2. Rookie Jaret Wright ensured that AL Central champion Indians would not come home in a 2-0 hole for the second straight season.

Instead, the defending World Series champion Yankees must win two of three on the road to keep their repeat drive alive.

``We've been a pretty good road team all year, so that doesn't really devastate us,'' Yankees manager Joe Torre said.

Tonight's matchup between New York's David Wells (16-10) against Cleveland's Charles Nagy (15-11) could be the most intriguing of the series.

``To me, Game 3 is the pivotal game,'' said Torre, whose World Series victory ride last October began with a Game 3 triumph by Cone after the Atlanta Braves won the first two games.

When Wells was with Baltimore last year, he faced Nagy twice in the division series. The Orioles won both games and ousted the Indians in four.

The Game 4 matchup was brilliant, with Nagy striking out 12 only to watch Roberto Alomar hit a 12th-inning homer off Jose Mesa to end Cleveland's playoff run.

Wells was all business when he met the media Friday, just as he is on the mound in big games. He deflected one question about his wild reputation, fueled by near-fisticuffs with George Steinbrenner and pitching with a cap once worn by Babe Ruth.

``I don't think that's relevant to what we're trying to do here,'' Wells said. ``We're here for baseball, so we'll talk about baseball.

``When I go out between the lines, I'm all business,'' he added. ``If you don't like what you see, I'm sorry. I do get emotional. I have outbursts at times. But that's what has gotten me to this point in my career.''

Indians manager Mike Hargrove snubbed Nagy in favor of 21-year-old Wright in Game 2. It's time to see how Nagy will respond. The 30-year-old right-hander is 0-3 with an 18.00 ERA this year against the Yankees, surrendering 24 hits in nine innings.

``Obviously, Charlie has not had a lot of luck against the Yankees this year,'' Hargrove said. ``In the postseason, things have a funny way of turning around.''

Nagy, whose calm demeanor is such a contrast to Wells, doesn't take much stock in New York's mastery of him.

``I can only go out there and pitch the way I pitch,'' Nagy said. ``I feel fine, I feel comfortable, I feel confident.''

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Photo

Photo: Game 3 starter David Wells brushed aside his wild reputation, saying, ``When I go out between the lines, I'm all business.''

Associated Press