The Philadelphia Inquirer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Page 55

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E3. Auto Racing E7 Baseball E4 NFL E2 Rowing E2 Sports in Brief E3 Thursday, August 6, 1998 Philadelphia Online: htip: FOOTBALL '98 Eagles Preseason Begins Sports Another bump in road for Brice in comeback Testaverde flying high in quest for Jets job Observers say he has outplayed Cherry Hill's Glenn Foley. Eagles vs. N.Y. Jets Tonight at 8, Veterans Stadium, Television: Channel 17.

Radio: WYSP-FM 94.1. Tonight, the cornerback can put gunshot wounds and knee injuries behind him. By Phil Sheridan INQUIRER STAFF WRITER BETHLEHEM, Pa. There is no trace of bitterness in Alundis Brice. When he steps on to the field tonight at Veterans Stadium, he will think only of how far he has come, not the pain and loss that plagued his every step." Whatever happens next whether Brice earns a job with the Eagles, moves on to another team, or sees his career end prematurely he will have tonight's preseason opener against the Jets as proof of his strength of spirit.

A gunshot wound watching football. I'd rather play football." More than 25 years later, little has changed. Testaverde is back at Hofstra this time as a Jets quarterback and he still prefers the view from the scrimmage line to that of the sideline. "Did I come here to be a backup? No, not at all," said Testaverde, a veteran of 11 seasons. "I want to start, and I've been told that if I play better, I will start." Head coach Bill Parcells signed Testaverde as an unrestricted free agent from Baltimore shortly after the Jets waived quarterback Neil O'Donnell in June.

Tes-See QUARTERBACK on E2 By Phil Gianficaro FOR THE INQUIRER HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. Vinny Testaverde grew up in Floral Park, just five miles from the New York Jets' training camp at Hofstra University. As a youngster, he wore the No. 12 of his hero, Joe Namath, on his jersey and his love for the Jets on his sleeve. Surprisingly, what he didn't do was wear a path from his front door to the Jets' camp.

"I came to a few practices, but not many," Testaverde said this week as the Jets prepared for their preseason opener against the Eagles tonight at Veterans Stadium. "I hated standing on the sideline that came inches from killing him could not keep Brice from this moment. Neither could two devastating injuries to his right knee. These were merely tests, as the 28-year-old cornerback sees it, tests his presence tonight proves he has passed. "If God wanted to end my career," Brice said, "He would have taken it a long time See EAGLES on E2 Associated Press JOHN DUNN "Did I come here to be a backup? No, not at all," says Vinny Testaverde, who took the controls in a passing drill at Hofstra.

LJ rown, Padres in hand the Phils 7th loss in row Magee hot to earn a 2d shot with Phils oaf3- i -W- only 10 hits in 54 chances with runners in scoring position The game was to have been a matchup of two premier righthanders Schilling and Brown. Brown (14-3). kept his end of the bargain, firing a complete-game five-hitter to win his 11th straight decision, the best streak in the majors this season. Brown struck out a career-high 11, and the only walk he issued was intentional. Schilling pitched six innings and was again buried by a high pitch count.

He threw 116, including 39 in the bottom of the fifth inning, when the Padres sent nine men to the plate and scored three runs. Schilling allowed four of his eight hits in that inning. He also walked one and hit a batter. He got Chris Gomez on a bases-loaded bouncer back to the mound for the third out, then walked off the mound with a look of complete frustration. See PHILLIES on E5 The San Diego ace outdueled Curt Schilling, who suffered his 11th defeat of the season.

By Jim Salisbury INQUIRER STAFF WRITER SAN DIEGO No matter how bad things got for the Phillies in recent seasons, they could always count on Curt Schilling to Phillies 0 take the mound Padres 4 every fifth day and make everything right again. Now, even that doesn't work anymore. Schilling got knocked around again last night as Kevin Brown and the San Diego Padres blanked the Phils, 4-0, at Qualcomm Stadium. It was the Phils' seventh straight defeat, a season high. During the skid, Phillies hitters have produced By Jerry Brewer 1NUIIIRF.R STAFF WHITER OOSIC, Pa.

Wendell UV 1 1 bat these days as if il 1 1 were a broom' n's mas" If sive arms lofting the 1 7 1 1 City's next hero? Looks like Rolen He could be an exception to the home-grown rules. ball high and far and out of reach. And he always has a smile that is so genuine, so well-intentioned. Last week, after the Red Barons swept a doubleheader from Rochester, Magee stood in the clubhouse, pretending to be bucktoothed, as he congratulated his teammates. Laughter filled the room.

One year after a terrible season in which he was bumped from the Phillies after only 38 games and then struggled for the triple-A ScrantonWilkes-Barre Red Barons, Magee is reviving his career. Before last night's International League game against the Pawtucket Red Sox, the centerfielder was hitting .279 with 23 home runs and 60 RBIs. He ranked fourth in the league in homers. "He's there," said Bill Robinson, ScrantonWilkes-Barre's hitting coach. "He's ready.

He's put himself right back in the picture. He's playing and he's hitting with a lot of confidence. He really didn't have that consistent confidence last Now he's coming up to me and saying, 'If that guy throws this pitch, it's outta Magee is a hulking 6-foot, 200-See MAGEE on E5 Most of the marquee names of sports play somewhere else. In Philadelphia, we hardly ever grow our own. Some we import, and they stay long enough that the statute of limitations expires and we can claim them as ours.

Steve Carlton. Julius Erving. Some we rent I- For The Inquirer BILL CAIN Torrid-hitting Wendell Magee Jr. takes a swing for ScrantonWilkes-Barre during a game against Rochester. After a mediocre stint as a Phillies starter in 1997, he's working toward a comeback.

I- A i i i i just long enough for a championship. Pete Rose. Moses Malone. For some, we are merely a rest stop along the turnpike. Reggie White.

Ricky Watters. Some we raise An Up-and-Down Career Wendell Magee statistics, through Aug. 4. Bill Lyon 1994 Batavia .279 63 64 2 35 1995 Clearwater .353 96 137 6 46 Reading .294 39 40 3 21 1996 Reading .293 71 79 6 30 Scranton-Wilkes Barre .284 44 44 10 32 Phillies .204 38 29 2 14 1997 Phillies .200 38 23 1 9 .245 83 72 10 39 1998 .278 104 117 23 60 League-leading average. 5 I I 11 from pups, and then, reluctantly, release.

Charles Barkley. Some flame out on us. Lenny Dyk-stra. Some we start with from scratch, and wait. And wait.

And waiting is not something we do at all well in Philadelphia. Is it, Eric Lindros? Some look too good to be true. We hold our breath and hope they do not self-destruct. Paging Mr. Iver-son, Mr.

Allen Iverson. We always leave the light on, hoping someone will happen by to fill the vacancy we always seem to have. Would that be you, Bobby The Philadelphia Inquirer JERRY LODRIGUSS Scott Rolen is following his rookie-of-the-year season with an even better performance. Hoying? And now we come to a category that has been vacant for some time, one that was last occupied by Mike Schmidt that of home-grown, all-his-career-in-Philadelphia, Hall of Fame hero. We have an early candidate: Scott Rolen.

The Last Boy Scout. You want to whisper this, barause 4 See ROLEN on E5 The centerfielder watches the action from the Red Barons' dugout. VHe's ready," says Bill Robinson, the team's hitting coach..