As always, Soxaholix has a finger firmly on the pulse of Red Sox Nation (the good one, not Lucky Larry’s commercial RSN doppelganger). And Eric Wilbur managed to drag up an excellent quote from one Dr. Charles Steinberg:
In any baseball city, the truck’s departure for Spring Training connects with a lot of fans. In Boston and in New England, that is magnified so many times over. Instead of just making it our little private fireplace of warmth, you want to connect with the fans, resonate with the fans, share it with the fans, give them a chance to celebrate spring as well.
When you see the images of snow at one end and sunshine at the other … this trip is a metaphor. Winter is going to end. Spring is going to come. And baseball is the robin. Baseball heralds spring. You want to celebrate that.