Fourthought: In the big picture of Boston sports, are we caught in a transition of ownership?

Let me make it clear that I'm thinking out loud here. But we turn the page on another year, I'm wondering more and more about the transition of ownership - and, therefore power - that might be the most underplayed story in all of Boston sports. And you know why? Because, for the most part, it's not sexy or salacious - at least not yet. But it is very, very real. And one can't help but wonder how it is - and has been - affecting the decision-making at the highest levels of all four major Boston franchises, all of whom are going through varying degrees of transition, in the arena of play or, more importantly, off it. I don't know about you, but I've always regarded transition as something of a four-letter word, at least with regard to the world of pro sports. For example: the Bruins are transitioning from an era built around Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci to ... what, exactly? The Celtics are transitioning from the ownership of the Grousbeck family to ... whom? The Patriots are not just transitioning from Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, but also, perhaps, from Robert Kraft. And the Red Sox, while now seemingly building around a new core of young players, also rest on the brink of changes that could dramatically impact their organizational decision-making. Look, here's the point: we all age. And inevitably, that means someone else has to sit in the big chair. And given the simple truth that no two people are alike, well, the most influential voices atop all four Boston teams are either on the verge of changing or have changed (at least to some degree) already. Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs is 84. Patriots owner Robert Kraft is 83. Red Sox principal owner John Henry is 75. And Celtics owner Irv Grousbeck, who is 90, already has his team up for sale, much to the chagrin of his son, Wyc Grousbeck, who has been the public face of team ownership. If you're on the younger side of the Boston sports fandom, you may not particularly care about all of this - and that's not a criticism - but you will. You're just not there yet because you have most of your life in front of you. You're really just getting started. But then, that's exactly the point we're trying to emphasize: you don't think the same way nearer the end of your time than you do nearer the beginning. And if that is true for all of us, why wouldn't it be true for the people who sit atop the four sports franchises that have been as significant a part of Boston's identity as the Prudential and Hancock buildings, the Citgo sign and the Custom House? Things here aren't about to change. They already have been changing And maybe we just haven't been paying enough attention.