I’m walking down a long, paved sidewalk in early March, with a practice baseball field on my left and a grove of well-trimmed trees on my right. I’m worrying about the snow that fell as I left Washington, D.C., the night before, worrying about work and bills and the hassles of everyday life, worrying about the sunscreen I left at home.

A hundred yards from the stadium, I hear what has become an annual ritual: A cheer rising from the stands, the cheer of a happy and hopeful crowd that has traveled to Phoenix to watch their baseball team prepare for the season ahead.

In that moment, I stop, I br...