Yankees Change Facial Hair Policy, Will Allow 'Well-Groomed Beards Moving Forward'

One of the most antiquated policies in sports is finally getting an upgrade for the modern era, as the New York Yankees are relaxing their policy against facial hair.

In a statement from Yankees chairman Hal Steinbrenner, the team announced Friday that it will allow players and uniformed personnel to have "well-groomed beards" effective immediately.

According to ESPN's Jeff Passan, Steinbrenner and other high-ranking Yankees officials "spoke with a number of players and former players over the past week" while mulling over a chance to the policy. Passan reported that the possibility of losing out on potential free agents "was a subject that consistently came up in those conversations."

The Yankees adopted a policy banning beards and long hair in 1973 under then-owner George Steinbrenner because he didn't like the way some members of the team looked when they were standing on the field during the singing of the National Anthem.

Some players over the years have tried to test the limits of the rule. Don Mattingly was famously benched for a game during the 1991 season due to the length of his hair, which was famously parodied on an episode of The Simpsons.

The policy has been subject to scrutiny over the years. Some players, including former closer Brian Wilson and Cy Young winner David Price, said they wouldn't sign with the Yankees because of the rule.

Andrew McCutchen, who was acquired by the Yankees for the stretch run during the 2018 season, said he felt like the policy "takes away from our individualism as players and as people."

There's no legitimate reason the policy should have existed in the first place, let alone continued for as long as it has.

Even though it took longer than it should have for the Yankees to relax their rules, the fact that it finally happened is a good move for the organization.