MELBOURNE, Australia - Reigning Formula One world champion Sebastian Vettel says he cant understand why he struggled so much in a rain-hit qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix on Saturday, pushing him down to a starting grid spot of 12th for Sundays race. Tigers Jerseys 2020 . Vettel, who is aiming for his fifth-straight drivers championship, was brought down to earth at a rainy Albert Park street circuit, finishing well off the pace of pole sitter Lewis Hamilton and his new Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo. The German described the handling of his car as "horrible" during pre-qualifying practice, and things only got worse in qualifying "Once it started to rain, I was struggling with drivability ... it made life pretty difficult," Vettel said. Though disappointed with his own poor grid position, Vettel was buoyed by Ricciardos performance, which indicated Red Bull was not far off the pace of the front-running Mercedes despite a trouble-strewn preseason in which the team suffered an array of problems with the new V6 turbo hybrid engine. "There is performance in the car and that is the important thing," Vettel said. "We have a quick car and we just need to make it robust and reliable, but thats better than having a robust and reliable car and trying to make that quick." Vettel was at a loss to explain why Ricciardos car was apparently so much easier to drive. "There was not supposed to be a difference between the cars so today was not too happy on my side and we need to understand that, but fortunately it worked for him, so at least we have one car where it belongs." Custom Detroit Tigers Jerseys . -- Kansas City Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer will be out three to six weeks with a stress fracture of the third finger of his right hand. Detroit Tigers Store . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Darcy Kuemper, Minnesota (5): He was calm, poised, and looked comfortable all game. https://www.cheaptigers.com/ . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles Kings (3) - Early goal against was on the power play.The Toronto Blue Jays are one of three teams to show interest in American League MVP finalist Victor Martinez. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports that the Jays, along with the Seattle Mariners, are interested in the 35-year-old designated hitter. Heyman says that the Detroit Tigers are also interested in retaining his services. Martinez led the American League in both OBP (.409) and OPS (.974) this season, along with hitting 32 home runs and 103 RBI and posting a .335 average. Headingg into his 13th season in the MLB, Martinez is coming off of the final year of a four-year, $50 million deal with the Tigers. Detroit Tigers Pro Shop. Heyman speculates that Martinez will be looking for a deal somewhere in the neighbourhood of four years and $80 million. The Mariners, who are also reportedly interested in Los Angeles Dodgers free agent short stop Hanley Ramirez, could be loath to make such a commitment after handing Robinson Cano a 10-year, $240 million deal last winter. ' ' '