Boston Red Sox fans will never pass up an opportunity to make fun of the New York Yankees. One of the most intense rivalries in sports, Red Sox fans will gleefully bring up Pedro Martinez tossing Don Zimmer to the ground, Jason Varitek punching Alex Rodriguez or the 3-0 comeback in the 2004 ALDS that helped Boston break The Curse of the Bambino.
There’s plenty of content that the Red Sox can draw upon when they make fun of the Yankees but one of the strangest is the no facial hair policy. Created when George Steinbrenner couldn’t identify his own players by their faces in 1973, Yankee players have been forced to be clean shaven, giving baseball fans some of the most ridiculous downgrades in the sport (and Red Sox fans some classic material).
But on Friday, the stupidest rule in baseball finally met its end.
Yankees Eliminate Facial Hair Policy, Kill the Dumbest Rule in Baseball
The dumbest rule in baseball was eliminated on Friday when Hal Steinbrenner made the following statement before the Yankees workout in Tampa, Florida.
“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.”
Statement from Yankees Managing General Partner Hal Steinbrenner on the alteration of Yankees facial hair policy: pic.twitter.com/UdEuAg3gZy
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) February 21, 2025
In case you don’t want to read all of that, the Yankees are allowing beards now. But if any hair is out of place, the ghost of George Steinbrenner will come crashing down on your soul.
The Red Sox have had a front row seat to how dumb this rule is. Johnny Damon had a trademark beard on the beloved 2004 team that won the World Series but was forced to hack it off when he signed with New York in 2006. More recently, Joey Gallo his beard before putting on pinstripes while new acquisitions Devin Williams and Paul Goldschmidt look like guys that are running an IT department instead of playing for the Yankees.
The rule was so stupid that the first thing Gleyber Torres did after leaving the Yankees in free agency was grow a beard which is now prominently displayed at Detroit Tigers Spring Training.
It’s even funnier considering this rule did nothing to hinder the Yankees’ on-field performance as they haven’t won a World Series since 2009. Are “well-groomed” beards going to make the difference? Probably not.
Alas, the facial hair rule is no more. But Red Sox fans will surely find a different reason to make fun of the Yankees.