You would think that the most successful franchise in American History would allow their players to express themselves freely in order to want people to play for them. But no, the New York Yankees for almost 50 years did not allow players to have beards, or long hair. The team rule was put in place in 1976 by new owner George Steinbrenner and has stuck around until earlier this morning.
The reason why it started for the Yankees is not too crazy of a concept at the time. George Steinbrenner was in the military for a bit in his younger years and when he saw the players hair being unkept when they would take off their hats for the National Anthem, he wanted the appearance of the players to improve. This came with some backlash, but was not an uncommon thing at the time as from 1967-1999 the Cincinnati Reds had the same policy in place.
Some notable moments that came from the Yankees team rule was when Dock Ellis was traded after he wore an earring on the mound. Randy Johnson was traded to the Yankees he had to cut his signature long hair. Oscar Gamble is probably the player who suffered the most from the rule. Before he joined the Yankees he was known for his afro and even had a sponsorship deal with Afro Sheen. When Oscar cut his afro off, Afro Sheen stopped their endorsement of Oscar which cost him.
Players that did not want to play for the Yankees because of their silly hair rule were fairly common too. Most notably in 2016 when then free agent David Price did not want to sign with the Yankees solely based on their hair policy. In 2013 when star San Francisco Giants reliever Brian Wilson, known for his big beard, was going to be traded to the Yankees, but the trade fell through when Wilson said he would not shave his beard. Current Yankees Manager Bob Boone said that even 1 player not wanting to be a Yankee because of thier team rule is too many players. Well buddy, there is probably a bunch of players who do not want to shave their beard just to be apart of the Yankees. I personally think that the team rule is very stupid, but the Yankees have had it in place for almost 50 years and have built up the reputation of being strict and high class. George Steinbrenner is rolling in his grave right now, poor guy.
If this was a Seinfeld episode it would go like this. Jerry wants to date a girl that likes men with beards. George thinks that if he were to grow beard he would pick up more chicks. Steinbrenner likes George's beard and thinks that players on the field look more tough and intimidating with a beard. Elaine dates a guy with a beard and complains about how it scratches her while kissing. Kramer can't grow a beard and tries to buy a beard off of a guy.
Please like and share with a few homies, a bearded Yankees fan, or possibly your dog.
That is todays Tea, with T
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