By George
When George Steinbrenner was running the Yankees he believed that regulating his ballplayers’ appearance would instill a sense of discipline. Back in ‘76, Steinbrenner and his wild man manager Billy Martin introduced the “neatness counts” policy, which banned beards, mutton chops, and long hair from the ballclub. And that legacy continues today. Anything beyond a Mattingly mustache is unacceptable.
Hey, Catholic schools have had uniforms and neatness counts rules for years. And goddamn, it seems to work. They sure as hell don’t have the fist-fighting and beating up of the teachers the way public schools do—and the kids in uniform are getting better grades.
Anyway, back to the majors. A lot of ballplayers today look like they could be on Duck Dynasty. If you play for the Yanks and wear the pinstripes, ya gotta look the part, baby. When the Red Sox traded Alex Verdugo to the Yankees, everyone thought he’d raise hell over having to shave his red beard. He didn’t. He clipped it off two months before spring training. His mom loves the new look and Verdugo said it’s like a fresh start. He feels like a kid again.
Another thing I like about the Yanks is they don’t have their names on the back of their jerseys. They play as a team. Notre Dame does the same thing. That’s the way it ought to be, Jack.
Keep your dukes up.
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