Derek Jeter’s hit pursuit overshadows Jim Thome’s homer chase

Derek Jeter’s well-chronicled bid to join the far less exclusive 3,000-hit club has all but eclipsed Jim Thome’s lonely quest to crash baseball’s 600-homer club.…

Maybe it would be different if Thome played in New York.…

Ty Cobb’s .366 batting average is the highest among players with 3,000 hits, Cal Ripken Jr.’s .276 the lowest.…

The Dodgers and Angels seem to have found their level, which is good news for Jered Weaver and the Angels, of course, and bad news for Matt Kemp and the Dodgers.…

The Angels, Wednesday’s squandered opportunity aside, have quietly reclaimed their place among baseball’s elite.…

The Dodgers noisily have not.…

Did anyone else find it funny that the Dodgers showed ads for “Horrible Bosses” all over the stadium Tuesday night? …

Interleague games, which consistently draw better than intraleague games, apparently are here to stay, more bad news for the Dodgers in their losing battle against the Angels.…

Tony La Russa, on the designated hitter: “Dump it.” …

When word gets to Kobe Bryant that backup center Ian Mahinmi of the Dallas Mavericks calls him the NBA’s most arrogant player, the Lakers star probably will ask the same question everyone else is asking: “Who is Ian Mahinmi?” …

Noting that Andrew Bynum is working with boxing trainer Freddie Roach, reader Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, Calif., writes, “He’s already 1-0 with a TKO of J.J. Barea.” …

If the Boston Celtics put Ray Allen’s No. 20 in the rafters, they’ll have retired every number from 14 to 25.…

Tom Brady, judged by his peers to be the NFL’s top player in an NFL Network poll, said of runner-up Peyton Manning, “To me, he’s the greatest of all time.” …

The rest of the top 10, revealed this week: Adrian Peterson, Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Troy Polamalu, Andre Johnson, Darrelle Revis, Drew Brees and Julius Peppers.…

Aaron Rodgers, pushing to improve upon his No. 11 ranking, tells the Sporting News, “I’m blessed to have a quarterbacks coach who sometimes doesn’t think I’m very good.” …

Tom Clements provides the negative reinforcement.…

Noting that Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs, divorced from Eva Longoria, reportedly is dating a French beauty pageant winner, David Thomas of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes, “We knew Parker was good at dishing out assists, but apparently he’s also pretty good at rebounding too.” …

Roy Williams of the Dallas Cowboys reportedly proposed to a former Miss Texas by mail, confidently enclosing a $76,000 ring along with a recorded request for her hand.…

His Hail Mary fell incomplete.…

The British Open next week will be the 13th consecutive major championship not won by Tiger Woods.…

With promoters charging $4,000 for tickets to Saturday’s charity polo match in Santa Barbara featuring Prince William, reader James Fryman wonders, “Is it Bobble-head Day?” …

Mark Teixeira’s being left off the American League All-Star team despite ranking among the league leaders in home runs and runs batted in reminds that Hank Greenberg was snubbed in 1935 despite racking up 103 RBIs before the break.…

Greenberg, left off in favor of Lou Gehrig and Jimmie Foxx, later was a unanimous pick as league MVP. …

Vocalist Sue Raney may be married to trumpeter Carmen Fanzone, who played for the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs, but that didn’t stop her from recording Dave Frishberg’s “Dodger Blue,” former Dodgers announcer Ross Porter notes.…

In a USA Today poll asking whether hot dog-eating champion Joey Chestnut is an athlete, 68% of respondents checked a box reading, “No. Or I’d be the greatest athlete three times a day.” …

Aboard Game On Dude, which she rode to victory in the Santa Anita Handicap, Chantal Sutherland on Saturday will become the first female rider in the Hollywood Gold Cup.…

Her victory at Santa Anita in March made Sutherland the first female jockey to ride a winner in the Big ‘Cap.…

Noting that Terrell Owens reportedly had surgery in April, humorist RJ Currie of sportsdeke.com writes, “He’s been hampered by a torn ACL and an inflamed EGO.”

jerome.crowe@latimes.com