The last weekend of January can be brutal for Twins fans and Minnesotans alike. Brutally cold weather, losing sports teams, general malaise and seasonal depression just to name a few. But it also means Twinsfest Live, Diamond Awards and the granddaddy of them all: Twinsfest. 

Reduced down to just a single day for autographs, Twins fans nevertheless came out in droves after a successful 2023 season that saw the end of The Streak (no, not a repeat of Brock beating Taker, and that still wasn't the right choice imo, but I digress). Yes, the Twins have now officially won a playoff GAME (two in fact) the last 2 decades. 

Twins fans came out in droves, in fact it was announced Friday night that Twinsfest Saturday was sold out! 

I attended Twinsfest Autograph Saturday and here are some of my personal takeaways, as always, feel free to comment below!

1. Twins fans are just as excited as ever: Winning playoff games will do that to a fanbase. But it wasn't just that, it was the team they put on the field. I spoke to many people who were just as excited to meet Pablo Lopez and Joe Ryan as they were Rod Carew or Kent Hrbek. Winning is contagious and this fan base has been waiting so long for post season success. The fans showed up on Saturday, now its up to the team to show up again in October. 

2. Royce Lewis is by far the MOST popular player on the roster. His line for Autographs was insanely long. He started signing at 3:15 and fans were lined up at 11:30 to get his autograph. He was a busy man and never took the smile off his face. Every fan I talked to said he was the player they were most looking forward to saying hi to or seeing play next year. When I yell you he's as exciting as Kirby was in his heyday, it's true. Now, with some success (and Twins history) under his belt, it's time for him to take the reigns and become the undisputed fave of the franchise. 

3. Byron Buxton is healthy and ready, that should excite fans. Buxton is the most divisive Twins player since Joe Mauer(not including Miguel Sano). Fans either love him or hate him, there's no in between. He's either an All Star caliber player that makes tough plays look easy, or he's an often injured soft bum whose collecting a paycheck. Wherever you lie on that scope, know this: Byron is ready. He hasn't been this ready for a while. I asked him on Saturday while going through his autograph line when we might see him back in the field and how he's feeling, and he said "I feel great, hopefully in the field on Opening day". That is music to this fans ears. Buxton makes the lineup better. You can't teach his speed and given the Twins haven't (and likely wont) re sign Michael A Taylor, who was his backup last year, a healthy Buxton is required for a deep playoff run. 

4. Players are excited about this year's team. Almost to a man, every player I spoke to briefly and asked how they were feeling about the 2024 season said something similar: "Excited" "Can't wait" "Build on last year". This team has, in my opinion, a perfect mix of veterans (Buxton, Correa, and Pablo Lopez) combined with younger players still looking for sustainable success/consistency or looking to take a step forward and build from 2023 (Ober, Wallner, Julien, Lewis). This is a mix the Twins haven't had in years, it showed last October and hopefully will again this year.

5. Joe Mauer is still a beloved figure, and a first ballot Hall of Famer. That's right, whether it's old school Twins fans who dont understand concussions and what exactly "bi lateral leg weakness" is, young fans to whom he's just a name in team history, to fans in their 30s and 40s like myself who saw his entire career, Mauer is as popular as ever. You can debate the first ballot thing, but you can't say that he isn't popular. He was signing at 9:15 on Saturday morning and my wife was in line at 9:02 (just after the doors opened) and she said there was already 150 people in his line. Hometown player, entire career with the Twins, Twins Hall of Fame and now the MLB HOF, he is without a doubt, the most popular Twins player, since Kirby Puckett. He helped the Twins stay relevant and was often the face of the franchise as a Catcher. I've always been a fan and always will be. Congrats on your incredibly well deserved induction, Joe! 

(Side note: I talked to people who said the Mauer line stretched out the room, down the hall and around the corner, roughly 400+ people)

Final Takeaways: Twins fans and players alike are excited for 2024. The players I spoke to (albeit briefly) all mentioned how much fun last year was and how they want more of that success in October, and the players feel like the team is built for it. In my opinion, it's going to come down to two big keys (health, as always; and growth). If they stay healthy and Lewis, Julien and Wallner continue to improve, they will make a deep October run, and then maybe next year, Twinsfest will go back to Two days for autographs.