Yankees strict in appearance, dress code in MLB

To become a member of the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball, you must pass two rites of passage. Firstly, you must shave your hair and beard cleanly and then take a photo under the signboard reading, “Thank you to the Lord for making me a Yankees member,” before attending a press conference on joining the team.

The player who most recently went through this rite of passage is left-handed pitcher Carlos Rodon (30). During the eight years he played for the Chicago White Sox and the San Francisco Giants, his iconic beard would cover one-third of his face. Having signed a six-year contract with the Yankees for a total of 162 million U.S. dollars, he told a press conference on Friday, “My three-year-old daughter and one-year-old son have seen me with my beard shaved for the first time,” he said. “I'm glad my children were able to recognize their dad.”

Among the 30 Major League Baseball teams, the Yankees are the strictest in appearance and dress code. A Yankees player cannot grow a beard except a ‘well-groomed mustache’ and keep his hair longer than his collar.

The team that had the strongest influence on the Yankees in making this rule was the Oakland Athletics, which won the World Series for three consecutive years from 1972. At the time, so many players with beards in Auckland were called ‘The Mustache Gang.’ It was a time when there were so few players with beards in the entire league that you could count them with only one hand.

Yankees players must also appear in games with all the buttons on their uniforms buttoned up. David Wells (59), who would habitually keep the top button unbuttoned, was scolded even after achieving the 15th perfect game in Major League history in 1998.


Kyu-In Hwang kini@donga.com