Well, the glorious 2007 baseball season is officially underway, even if the folks who are DirecTV-impaired can't enjoy it to the fullest. While Opening Day is always a time for hope and faith, I just want to say that recent results notwithstanding, I'm not particularly bullish about the Astros' chances this season. While I agree that everything is possible (hope and faith! hope and faith!), not everything is likely. I don't see the Stros doing too well unless they patch some of the gaping holes in their lineup - I don't care how liberally they're smeared with Veteran Leadership Butter, Adam Everett and Brad Ausmus could go up to the plate swinging pencils and it wouldn't materially affect their offensive ability. But hey, I could be wrong, and that's the beautiful thing about it - they've got 162 games to make me eat my words, and they're in a division that's riddled with mediocrity, where (say it with me now) anything is possible. That's why they play the games, and so I say: Play ball!