Child’s Play : NEW YORK 5, BALTIMORE 4 (11)

It took a mysterious black glove, an apple-cheeked, 12-year-old fan, a heated argument between 10 guys and an umpire, and one of the most controversial calls in postseason history, but baseball found a way to put the Roberto Alomar incident on the back burner Wednesday night.

And for that, the game has Jeffrey Maier to thank.

Jeffrey who?

That would be Jeffrey Maier, the youngster from Old Tappan, N.J., who carved his own pint-sized niche into New York sports lore, right there next to Reggie Jackson, Willis Reed and Joe Namath.

Just call him Kid October.

Maier hauled Derek Jeter’s eighth-inning fly ball into the right-field bleachers, turning a potential New York Yankee out into a game-tying home run, and Bernie Williams won it with a homer in the 11th, as the Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles, 5-4, in Game 1 of the American League championship series.

A Yankee Stadium crowd of 56,495 saw New York overcome a 4-2, sixth-inning deficit, Williams increase his playoff home run total to four, Jeter collect four hits and Jeff Nelson, John Wetteland and Mariano Rivera provide four more innings of scoreless relief.

But the hero of this game, the one who has already received invitations to “Late Night With David Letterman,” “Good Morning America” and the “Today” show, who will be a household name across New York’s five boroughs, is Jeffrey Maier, who, when asked how he felt about being the central figure in the game, replied:

“It’s pretty cool.”

The Yankees thought so. The Orioles didn’t. And Rich Garcia, the umpire who made the controversial call and later admitted blowing it, wasn’t sure what to think.

The Yankees were trailing, 4-3, when Jeter lifted a high fly ball to right, sending outfielder Tony Tarasco--and Garcia--to the wall. But just as Tarasco reached up to make the catch, Maier, wearing a black baseball glove, leaned over the wall and pulled the ball into the seats.

“It was like a magic trick,” Tarasco said. “I was getting ready for the ball to hit my glove and it just disappeared into mid-air. . . . It was like Merlin was in the house--abracadabra.”

Not since the O.J. Simpson trial has a black glove sparked such controversy. Garcia, who was on the warning track, immediately signaled home run, and Tarasco went ballistic, arguing fan interference.

Tarasco’s beef appeared legitimate. Replays were conclusive and backed Tarasco’s claim that the ball would have stayed in the park. Baltimore Manager Davey Johnson charged toward right field, followed by a string of Orioles.

Johnson was ejected after a lengthy argument and was still fuming afterward.

“You always say one play doesn’t beat you in a ballgame,” Johnson said. “But this is about as close as you can come.”

Garcia was in good position. “The way I saw it, it was going out of the park, so I called it a home run,” he said. “I never saw anyone touch the ball. It just disappeared.”

But after watching a replay moments after the 4-hour 23-minute game, and just before addressing reporters, Garcia admitted the ball wouldn’t have left the park.

“I still don’t think he would have caught it,” Garcia said. “The ball probably would have hit the wall, and at that point, fan interference should have been called, and the home-plate umpire would determine how many bases the batter is awarded. I don’t like to miss a play--no umpire does--but it happens sometimes.”

Johnson told umpires he was playing the game under protest, not because of the call, but because he felt proper security wasn’t provided on the outfield fence.

“We had a meeting before the game because of the problems in the Texas series [a fan near the left-field foul pole reached out and caught Juan Gonzalez’s home run in Game 2] and were told there would be extra security out there,” Johnson said. “If a 12-year-old kid can reach over the fence and catch a ball, there’s obviously not much security.”

An American League spokeswoman said the Orioles have 24 hours to file a written protest, after which Gene Budig, the American League president, would investigate and issue a decision.

“But I have no hope of winning a protest,” Johnson said, “because it was an umpire’s judgment.”

Yankee Manager Joe Torre said he didn’t see the play, but he didn’t feel the Yankees had won unjustly.

“You’re damn right I’ll take it,” Torre said. “People lean over the outfield wall at their ballpark [Camden Yards] all the time.”

Asked what he’d like to say to Maier, Jeter said, “Thank you . . . and I’d like to take him out with me somewhere.” How about Baltimore for Games 3, 4 and 5? “I’ll take him everywhere,” Jeter said.

Yankee owner George Steinbrenner chuckled when asked if the team was planning to honor Maier before Game 2 today. “I thought it was a good call,” he said, “but don’t get me in the middle of it.”

The Orioles scored in the second (Eddie Murray RBI groundout), third (Brady Anderson homer), fourth (Rafael Palmeiro homer) and sixth (B.J. Surhoff sacrifice fly) innings but couldn’t crack the Yankee bullpen, which has given up one earned run in 23 2/3 playoff innings.

New York scored in the first (Williams RBI groundout), second (Jim Leyritz RBI groundout) and seventh (Darryl Strawberry bases-loaded walk) innings, and after Jeter’s controversial homer, Williams connected off Oriole reliever Randy Myers to open the 11th.

“Anyone see a replay of Bernie’s home run?” Torre asked reporters. “That wasn’t too bad, either.”

* KID GLOVE: Jeffrey Maier, 12, is a hero in New York and villain in Baltimore today. C6

* NOTES, SCORECARD: C6

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Rule 3.16

When there is spectator interference with any thrown or batted ball, the ball shall be dead at the moment of interference and the umpire shall impose such penalties as in his opinion will nullify the act of interference.

If spectator interference clearly prevents a fielder from catching a fly ball, the umpire shall declare the batter out.