Monthly Archive 2025年3月8日

For the first time in nearly five decades, New York Yankees players will be allowed to have beards. On Friday,Yankees chairman Hal Steinbrenner said he is amending the team’s antiquated facial hair policy and will allow “well-groomed beards” moving forward. Under the old policy, no hair below the lip was allowed. Mustaches were OK, beards were not. Now they are.

“Outdated and somewhat unreasonable,” Steinbrenner called the policy on Friday. “… This generation, the vast majority of 20s, 30s, into the 40s men of this country have beards. The Vice President has a beard, members of Congress have beards, the list goes on and on in this country and in this world. It is part of who these younger men are. Part of their character. Part of the persona. Do I totally relate to that? It’s difficult for me. I’m an older guy who’s never had a beard in his life, but it’s a very important thing to them.”

The facial hair policy was put in place by the late George Steinbrenner, Hal’s father, in 1976. Steinbrenner’s military background has frequently been cited as the reason behind it, though it wasn’t a secret the policy was put in place to prevent Yankees’ players and coaches from wearing their hair in the style of the era. That meant no long hair, no afros, no think beards or big mustaches.

Countless players have had to shave upon joining the Yankees since 1976. Some made the decision themselves and joined the Yankees on lucrative free agent contracts. Others joined the team against their will because they were traded to the Yankees or drafted by the Yankees. (The facial hair policy extended all the way down the minors.) All had to shave to adhere to the policy.

With that in mind, here are 10 players who were famously impacted by the Yankees’ hair policy over the last five decades.

1. Oscar Gamble
   Perhaps the first “victim” of the facial hair policy, Gamble did not have a uniform in his locker when he reported to spring training in 1976, his first season with the Yankees. He was told he would not be issued a uniform until his trimmed his trademark afro.

“I got there in spring training, I didn’t have a uniform,” Gamble told the Dayton Beach News-Journal in 2016. “[Manager Billy Martin] told me I had to get a haircut before I get a uniform.”

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Gamble’s afro wasn’t quite the same in New York. Getty Images
Gamble had an endorsement deal lined up with Afro Sheen, a hair care product, but Steinbrenner reimbursed him for dropping the endorsement to comply with the team’s facial hair policy.

“George said, whatever they were gonna pay you, I’ll pay you. So I got it cut,” Gamble told the Dayton Beach News-Journal. “And I never grew it back. It was just a ’70s thing, that’s all it was.”

2. Thurman Munson
   The Yankees named Munson their first captain since Lou Gehrig in 1976. The beloved homegrown catcher was named AL Rookie of the Year in 1970 and he would go on to win AL MVP in 1976. That year, he sported a full beard on his Hostess baseball card:

Steinbrenner put the facial hair policy in place soon thereafter, and that was that. Munson shaved his beard and instead wore a thick mustache the rest of his career.

3. Goose Gossage
   The Hall of Fame closer is one of the most notable to rebel against the Yankees’ no beard policy. In 1983, he grew a Fu Machu style mustache that extended just below the lip, and pushed the envelope of the facial hair policy. “I actually grew it to piss Steinbrenner off,” Gossage told TMZ in 2014.

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The Goose nickname stuck. The clean-shaven look did not. Getty Images

Beards are no longer banned in the Bronx. The New York Yankees announced Friday morning that they are altering their longstanding facial hair policy. Players and uniformed personnel will now be allowed to have “well-groomed beards,” team chairman Hal Steinbrenner said in a statement. The Yankees previously had an infamous policy that mandated players could have mustaches but no other facial hair. That policy was put in place by former owner George Steinbrenner, Hal’s father, in the 1970s.

Here’s Hal Steinbrenner’s statement on the change:

“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. These most recent conversations are an extension of ongoing internal dialogue that dates back several years. 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.”

“Outdated and somewhat unreasonable,” Steinbrenner added at a press conference on Friday. “… This generation, the vast majority of 20s, 30s, into the 40s men of this country have beards. The Vice President has a beard, members of Congress have beards, the list goes on and on in this country and in this world. It is part of who these younger men are. Part of their character. Part of the persona. Do I totally relate to that? It’s difficult for me. I’m an older guy who’s never had a beard in his life, but it’s a very important thing to them.”

The Yankees’ appearance policy also states that players cannot have hair that goes past their collars. That part of the policy appears to be unchanged.

Several former Yankees players, including Andrew McCutchen and Cameron Maybin, have spoken out against the team’s old facial hair policy. Active players on the team have privately griped as well. Back in 2013, the Yankees were informed former San Francisco Giants closer Brian Wilson would not sign with them because he wouldn’t shave his beard.

History of Yankees’ no-beard policy: George Steinbrenner’s facial hair rules changed after nearly 50 years
Mike Axisa
History of Yankees’ no-beard policy: George Steinbrenner’s facial hair rules changed after nearly 50 years
No player has ever refused to shave and outright challenged the old facial hair policy, though several pushed the envelope and played with 5 o’clock shadows. New Hall of Famer CC Sabathia did that frequently during his time in pinstripes. In 1995, the Yankees waived the facial hair policy in part to accommodate rental ace Jack McDowell’s goatee.

10 Yankees players who were most impacted by team’s facial hair policy: Johnny Damon, Randy Johnson, more
Mike Axisa
10 Yankees players who were most impacted by team’s facial hair policy: Johnny Damon, Randy Johnson, more
George Steinbrenner bought the team in 1973 and implemented the facial hair policy in 1976, which was strongly influenced by his military background. Steinbrenner passed away in 2010 and the no-beard policy remained until Friday. Players such as Jason Giambi, Johnny Damon, and Gerrit Cole all shaved their beards and trimmed their hair to join the Yankees.

The Yankees went 94-68 and won the AL pennant in 2024. They will play their first spring training game Friday.

The days of beardless New York Yankees are over. Friday morning chairman Hal Steinbrenner announced he is altering the team’s longstanding facial hair policy that was instituted by his father. The Yankees will allow “well-groomed beards” moving forward. Previously, Yankees players were not allowed to wear hair below the lips. Mustaches were OK. Beards were not. Now, they are.

Here is Steinbrenner’s statement on the team’s new facial hair policy:

“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. These most recent conversations are an extension of ongoing internal dialogue that dates back several years. 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.”

The winds had begun to blow in the direction of eliminating the facial hair policy in recent years. Hal Steinbrenner suggested he would consider changing it several times, and former players have spoken out against it. Privately, current players gripe about it. Nearly five decades after the policy was put in place, it is now being changed.

The beard ban was officially implemented by the late George Steinbrenner in 1976, though the seeds were first planted when he purchased the team from CBS in 1973. Popular Yankees like Sparky Lyle and Thurman Munson wore beards when Steinbrenner purchased the team. Munson had a full beard on his 1976 Hostess card. He won AL MVP later that year.

The facial hair policy was put in place soon after Munson was photographed for that year’s card. The policy is said to have been strongly influenced by Steinbrenner’s military background, though it was also no secret he did not want his players to wear their hair in the style of the era. The policy was put in place to eliminate long hair, afros, etc.

“I have nothing against long hair, per se, but I’m trying to instill a certain sense of order and discipline in the ballclub, because I think discipline is important in an athlete,” Steinbrenner told The New York Times in 1978. “The players can joke about it, as long as they do it. If they don’t do it, we’ll try to find a way to accommodate them somewhere else. I want to develop pride in the players as Yankees. If we can get them to feel that way and think that way, fine. If they can’t, we’ll get rid of them.”

10 Yankees players who were most impacted by team’s facial hair policy: Johnny Damon, Randy Johnson, more
Mike Axisa
10 Yankees players who were most impacted by team’s facial hair policy: Johnny Damon, Randy Johnson, more
Although players complained both publicly and privately, the facial hair policy was largely abided by during its existence. Typically the players themselves policed the policy, with team captains like Derek Jeter and Aaron Judge leading by example more than vocally. On occasion, the manager would get involved, typically when a new player was brought in.

In 1995, the Yankees altered their facial hair policy after trading for the 1993 AL Cy Young winner Jack McDowell. McDowell, Don Mattingly, and others grew goatees and beards. The Yankees started that season 15-24, then beards and goatees were banned and the facial hair policy was reinstalled. They went 64-41 the rest of the way and made the postseason.

“It’s like a slap on the wrist,” Mattingly told the New York Times after the policy was reverted back. “They shouldn’t have changed it in the first place if they were going to take it away.”

Over the years players like Jason Giambi, Johnny Damon, and Gerrit Cole shaved their beards and cut their hair to join the Yankees on lucrative free agent contracts. Others were traded to the Yankees and forced to shave because of a decision they did not make. That includes new closer Devin Williams, who had a beard throughout his time with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Players largely do not like the policy, though they abided by it. In recent years, Hall of Famer CC Sabathia pushed the envelope more than any other player, frequently pitching with a 5 o’clock shadow. No player ever challenged the policy and outright refused to shave, however. The penalty for doing so (benching? fine?) is unknown.

“I’ve told myself since I got drafted that it was a privilege to have to shave. I’ve brainwashed myself into believing that and thinking that,” Yankees catcher Austin Wells, who wears a beard during the offseason and a mustache during the season, told MLB.com and the New York Daily News on Friday. “It’s always been a conversation (among players), but I don’t think it was ever like, ‘It might happen.'”

The facial hair policy dated back to 1976. It was antiquated, had been for quite some time, and now George’s son Hal has decided to amend it. It’s not gone completely, beards must be well-groomed (most are around the league), and the team still seemingly will not allow players to have hair longer than their collar. But the team’s outdated facial hair policy has been relaxed.