It's beginning to look a lot like Spring Training! The first signs of the 2025 season came on Thursday morning at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers as the Boston Red Sox equipment truck arrived.
"Everything will be organized by the end of the day, believe it or not," said Shawn Smith, general manager of Florida operations for the Boston Red Sox.
And it's a lot of stuff! The truck made the 1,500-mile trek this week from Fenway Park, full of everything needed for the next two months at Fenway South.
"Baseballs, jerseys, bats, you name it, it's in there," Smith said. "There's even some Cracker Jacks in there. It's kind of like a potpourri of things that almost looks like a big garage sale right now."
The equipment is making its way in, and the guys are hitting the field.
"A lot of our minor league guys here and working out," Smith said. "And it's really all systems go from this point. Everybody's here to get their work in, anxious to play games and anxious to start our season."
Truck Day is like the teaser for Spring Training. The official practices don't start for another week, but the sight of this tractor-trailer rolling up gets everyone excited for what's to come here in Florida.
"This is a time where your baseball cards come to life to see your favorite Red Sox players, and even players from your other favorite teams that come here to Southwest Florida. We all feel like we're 6 and 7 years old again," Smith said.
As well as for the fresh start of a brand new season.
"Hope springs eternal. Every single team in the major league starts with a 0-0 record. At this point and everyone's in pursuit to be on top at the end of the year," Smith said.
The Boston Red Sox pitchers and catchers report to JetBlue Park on Wednesday, Feb. 12 and the full team reports on Monday, Feb. 17.