The 1974 Baseball Dope Book (owned by the late co-founder of The Travelist and Frequent Business Traveler, Greg Andrew Spira) shows a well-mustachioed Thurman who played 11 seasons with the New York Yankees and, as captain, led them to three World Series.
The New York Yankees, a bastion of tradition not to mention World Series wins, announced a change to its grooming policy for players and coaches that has kept the Yankees clean shaven since 1976.
The team that plays in the House that Ruth Built has stood out in major league baseball for its clean-shaven players, a policy the franchise prided itself on. Going forward, all uniformed personnel will be permitted to sport a “well-groomed beard.”
The policy has impacted new acquisitions to the team such as Devin Williams, who was handed a razor upon arrival. After being acquired from the Brewers in December, the right-handed closer said he hadn’t been clean-shaven for about six years and hoped to keep his beard “as long as I can.”
Owner Hal Steinbrenner, the son of the man who implemented the policy, legenday owner George Steinbrenner, said that the Yankees’ policy was outdated because he came to the belief that the current generation of players believes their facial hair is part of their individuality, pointing out that even Vice President JD Vance and members of Congress routinely sport beards.
“Given how important it is to that generation and given that it is the norm in this world today, that was somewhat unreasonable, so I made the change,” Steinbrenner said in a news conference at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
Another factor Steinbrenner considered was that he did not want the team to possibly lose out on acquiring a player who did not want to play for the franchise because he did not want to shave. Steinbrenner called that hypothetical situation “very, very concerning” and noted that he was convinced that it was a “real concern” for members of the organization.
Speaking at the news conference, Steinbrenner said none of the current players dissented when asked if they would leave the rule in place. Catcher Austin Wells, who in the offseason grows a thick beard, told the Athletic that he was still trying to “process” the change, adding that he was uncertain about keeping his beard during the baseball season if as he has already “brainwashed” himself into believing shaving was a privilege while playing for the Yankees.
Looking back to 1976, George Steinbrenner, who served in the U.S. Air Force in the 1950s, enacted the rule because he believed the team should look disciplined. Almost half a century later, his son said that he believes his father would have eventually changed the rule if he felt it was impacting roster construction.
“Winning was the most important thing to my father,” Steinbrenner said at the news conference. “If somebody came and told him that they were very sure that this could affect us getting players we want to get – all we’re trying to do every offseason is put ourselves in the best position to get a player that we’re trying to get.”
“If something like this would detract from that, lessen our chances, I don’t know. I think he might be a little more apt to do the change that I did than people think because it was about winning,” he added.
(Photo: Accura Media Group)
