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The New York Yankees have officially lifted their ban on beards after requiring all players to have clean-shaven faces for the last 50 years.
In 1976, owner George Steinbrenner enacted the original policy prohibiting the MLB team from growing beards throughout the season. Since then, players have had the choice of either shaving their faces completely or keeping only a mustache from the start of spring training through playoffs. They also haven’t been allowed to grow their hair past the collar of the jerseys.
In a Friday statement, current owner Hal Steinbrenner, the 55-year-old son of George, announced that he was now revising his dad’s grooming rule.
“In recent weeks I have spoken to a large number of former and current Yankees — spanning several eras — to elicit their perspectives on our longstanding facial hair and grooming policy and I appreciate their earnest and varied feedback,” he said.
“These most recent conversations are an extension of ongoing internal dialogue that dates back several years,” the young Steinbrenner continued. “Ultimately the final decision rests with me, and after great consideration, we will be amending our expectations to allow our players and uniformed personnel to have well-groomed beards moving forward.
“It is the appropriate time to move beyond the familiar comfort of our former policy,” he concluded.
The update to the Yankees’ beard policy comes after a few players have been either benched or fined for refusing to cooperate. Former first-star baseman Don Mattingly was famously penalized for growing his mullet long in the 1990s. He later fought against the rule when he kept his goatee for a little while in 1995, his last season before retiring.
Just before Steinbrenner’s ruling, the Yankees’ new right-handed closer Devin Williams arrived for team photo day with a full-on beard. Luckily, he shaved his facial hair just before hitting the field, meaning he wasn’t violating the policy.
The 30-year-old MLB athlete previously played for the Milwaukee Brewers for five seasons. Williams was drafted by the Brewers for his first season in 2019 and named Rookie of the Year.
Williams didn’t have to worry about keeping a bare face on the Brewers. In fact, his scruffy beard was his trademark look on the mound.
When Williams was traded to the Yankees in December 2024, he admitted he wasn’t looking forward to shaving after having grown his beard for six years.
