The New York Yankees’ facial hair and grooming policy, an infamous edict in place for nearly 50 years, was formally amended for the first time Friday.
In a statement announcing the decision, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner said the organization will allow “well-groomed beards” effective immediately, changing a rule his father, George, established in 1976. The modification does not address the organization’s policy on hair length, which stipulates that uniformed personnel are not allowed to grow hair below their collar.
Speaking to reporters Friday, Steinbrenner said adjusting the mandate had been on his mind over the years. He emphasized the possibility of losing out on acquiring players because of the facial hair restrictions as a significant reason to make a change that registers as seismic for the franchise.
“If I ever found out that a player we wanted to acquire to make us better, to get us a championship, did not want to be here and, if he had the ability, would not come here because of that policy, as important as it is to that generation, that would be very, very concerning,” Steinbrenner said. “And I’m fairly convinced that that’s a real concern.”
Steinbrenner said he spoke with several players, past and present, including Aaron Judge, Gerrit Cole and Giancarlo Stanton individually on Monday to hear their opinions on the matter. He noted that not all of them were for the change.