While it is far too early in the season to make any declarations about the 2010 Detroit Tigers, it’s never too soon for premature observations.

The most obvious theme with this year’s team is its new look. There is new blood in the Tigers’ clubhouse this season. Out went Curtis Granderson, Placido Polanco, Edwin Jackson and Fernando Rodney. In came two rookies, a young power pitcher, and a veteran closer.

Austin Jackson and Scott Sizemore – the two rookies on this club – were handed starting jobs the first day of spring. Through the first seven games of this season, they look to be deserving of that trust. Jackson fills the vacated spots in center field and atop the batting order which were previously held by Granderson as Sizemore has taken over at second base. Second-year pitcher Max Scherzer is the new next big thing in the Tigers rotation and Jose Valverde owns the ninth inning role.

The young guys are still trying to make a name for themselves in the big leagues, and they will be complemented with a handful of veterans – all with something to prove.

Carlos Guillen and Jeremy Bonderman are trying to return to form after multiple injuries plagued last season. Magglio Ordonez is trying to regain the power that mysteriously left him a year ago, when he accounted for only nine home runs and 50 RBI. Johnny Damon, also new to the team this year, would love to show the Yankees that replacing him is not as easy as signing a low-budget vet like Randy Winn. Dontrelle Willis got a three-year contract worth $29 million when he arrived in Detroit in 2008 and has just one win to show for it. He spent much of last season on the disabled list with an anxiety disorder – likely a result of being a soft-tossing lefty who couldn’t throw strikes.

And then there’s Miguel Cabrera. Cabrera was rumored to have a drinking problem of John Daly like standards, and a 7 a.m. breathalyzer reading of .26 last October supported that stigma. He’s put down the bottle and picked up a bat and has been raking pitchers in the early going of this season – hitting .522 with two home runs and eight RBIs.

What this team has is a collective chip on its shoulder. The makeup of this roster is more like the World Series team from 2006 than the $130-plus million payroll teams that followed in ’08 and ’09. Less flash, more grit.

Detroit is off to a 5-2 start through its first seven games, and four of those wins were in come-from-behind fashion – perhaps the most notable victory being a 9-8 triumph over Cleveland after trailing 7-1 in the sixth inning.

The downside of the Tigers’ quick start is that their early games have been against Kansas City and Cleveland – two teams likely to battle it out for last place in the American League Central Division this year. After wrapping up their home series with Kansas City today (Wednesday, April 14) the Tigers will travel to the West Coast for an 11-game road trip.

The trip starts at Seattle on Friday, and then goes to Anaheim to face the Angels before concluding against the Texas Rangers. None of those teams are expected to be great this season, but all have a pedigree of playing well at home.

Whether the Tigers are good or not should not be up for debate. They are good. The question is are they better than the next guy? Detroit was good last year, and finished second in its division to a Minnesota Twins team that was just that much better. The regular season ends in October, leaving nothing to be decided in April.

All the Tigers can do right now is to avoid losing what they may have a chance to win later on. And so far, they have been able to do so.