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Unassisted
12-30-2005, 05:08 PM
http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/pro_baseball/article/0,2820,TCP_24442_4347491,00.html



By George, put Steinbrenner in charge of baseball dress code police
By Bill Valyo
community correspondent
December 30, 2005

There is only one conclusion that can be reached after George Steinbrenner, the owner of the New York Yankees, made Johnny Damon get rid of his beard and long hair before he becomes part of the again new New York Yankees lineup — make him head up the dress code committee for Major League Baseball. Steinbrenner has not been one of my favorite baseball owners. He interferes much too much with the manager. What he does do right, however, is make sure that his team looks good on and off the field.

Baseball players have become sloppy over the years. With all the money the make (yes, I will add this much used phrase), you would think that they could afford a haircut and a shave.

Most teams in the majors are poor examples for the cities they represent. City officials should put in a clause in the contracts they sign with owners when money for a new stadium are bantered about. It should read "we will give you the money, provided that your ballplayers get haircuts and beards removed" and that they set a fine example on and off the field.

Social fashion trends have molded the attitudes of ballplayers throughout the years. It seems that long hair, moustaches, beards, sideburns and goatees are common in lineups today.

In the late 60s and 70s, baseball dress on the field was conservative. Facial hair was out during this period. I remember when Dick Allen, the powerful first baseman, came to Philadelphial sporting a moustache and beard in the 70s. My loyalty to the team took a dip during his tenure with the Phillies.

It was the Cincinnati Reds who tried to enforce a dress code. Long hair was off-limits to the Reds. It was reported that Sparky Anderson, the manager at the time, told Pete Rose to ditch the Van Dyke beard when he showed up at spring training.

When the Reds met the Oakland Athletics in the 1972 World Series, writers dubbed the meeting as "Hair versus Square." The Athletics were the first team to encourage the growing of beards and mustaches, when their quirky owner Charlie O. Finley promoted a scheme and offered each player a $300 bonus to grow a mustache by the time the team photo was taken.

It also was reported that Yankees Dave Winfield, Reggie Jackson and Thurman Munson grew beards in the off season to upset Steinbrenner when contracts were being bargained. In 1976, The Boss had the Yankee Yearbook scrapped because several players were wearing long hair. He even benched Don Mattingly for refusing to have his hair cut.

Handling the dress code for the Major League is right up George's alley. He would put back the lack of class that baseball players have brought to the game.

And while he's at it, there should be a decree issued that all players wear their pants so that there would be at least 10 inches of sock showing. Now that's class!

harangatang
12-30-2005, 08:57 PM
What the Red Sox did in 2004 in my opinion was great. The policy of letting the players do what they want allowed them to have fun and ultimately it seemed it made some sort of an impact as they won the WS. Baseball players are people too and alot of times fans of the game don't remember that. I would rather have a WS team full of unshaven and ungroomed players then a bunch of clean shaven and groomed players who can't win the WS with a $200 million payroll.

Unassisted
12-30-2005, 10:00 PM
What the Red Sox did in 2004 in my opinion was great. The policy of letting the players do what they want allowed them to have fun and ultimately it seemed it made some sort of an impact as they won the WS. Baseball players are people too and alot of times fans of the game don't remember that. I would rather have a WS team full of unshaven and ungroomed players then a bunch of clean shaven and groomed players who can't win the WS with a $200 million payroll.I see your point and I know there are others who share that view. But I think that would be a minority view in the Cincinnati market. To expand that a bit, I doubt that giving players unrestrained freedom with dress/hair length/facial hair would work well away from the coasts. Like it or not, there are a lot of people in this country who do judge a book by its cover, and most of them live in middle America.

Joseph
12-30-2005, 10:34 PM
And let's also not forget MOST of America is under some form of dress code at work in regard to facial hair and or regular hair.

blumj
12-30-2005, 10:59 PM
There's already one "no fun league", we don't really need another. Johnny Damon doesn't even look like Johny Damon anymore, he looks like all the other pinstriped dorks. And with the games lasting 3+ hours with all the pitching changes and everything, the last thing baseball needs is anything that makes it more boring.

KronoRed
12-30-2005, 11:28 PM
And let's also not forget MOST of America is under some form of dress code at work in regard to facial hair and or regular hair.
Yeah but apparently sports stars are better then us ;)

wheels
12-31-2005, 08:10 AM
This stuff reminds me of John Madden's three rules when he coached in Oakland.

1. Be on Time

2. Pay Attention

3. Play Like Hell

Everything else is just nonsensical window dressing.

They could dress in tu tus and wear high heels for all I care.

RollyInRaleigh
12-31-2005, 09:53 AM
Agree, wheels, although the tutu and high heels are a little over the edge for me. ;) :p:

There is a unique way to express one's self on a baseball field that makes a player stand out and be unique. It far outshines all the long hair, funky beards and baggy pants that anyone can dream up. Any joker can do those things. Use the bat, the arm, the glove, the speed. Guarantee that will get you noticed more than any of the cosmetics.

steig
12-31-2005, 09:53 AM
I prefer to be clean cut and shaved each day. However, i don't feel that society should go around encouraging dress codes for how people groom themselves. As long as the players or any worker shows up washed, combed, and wearing appropriate clothing for work. What is going to be next teams or empoyers monitoring the length of fingernails? A beard is just that... a beard, if people have negative images of people with beards or long hair then maybe we should try to help those people accept others. The fans will embrace a winner whether they have long hair or short. In the end all the fan want is to win.

jregensb
12-31-2005, 10:29 AM
What the Red Sox did in 2004 in my opinion was great. The policy of letting the players do what they want allowed them to have fun and ultimately it seemed it made some sort of an impact as they won the WS.

It's the classic Patton v. Bradlely question; do you stand a better chance of promoting success in an organizaton (be it a baseball team an army or an office) by enforcing rigid discipline or by trusting people to behave appropriately and then giving them the freedom and tools to do so? Obviously George subscribes to the former, while Theo embraced the latter.

Even if someone could crunch numbers and "prove" that a dress code improves a teams winning percentage I'd still probably be against it. I've got a soft spot for the oddballs in baseball, and like it or not, goofy hair and creative whiskers are often part of the package.

Shaknb8k
12-31-2005, 10:39 AM
Im torn on this issue. I prefer the clean-cut look. I think it looks more professional. But if in any way that stops a player from wanting to play for the Reds or puts a sour taste in their mouth about the front office (like something else wont) then im against it.

I dont really have a problem with the baggy jerseys. I actually like it because it doesnt get much more old school than that. When I played a few years back I always wore a pair of XXL baseball pants and jersey when i should have wore no bigger than a Large. I wore them to "honor" old time baseball and so when people asked about them could tell them all about Ty Cobb. If im not mistaking Juan Pierre does the same thing to honor the old negro league players.

But when its said and done as long as it is not a slap in the face to the game of baseball then I could care less what they wear, with one stipulation...JUST WIN.

macro
12-31-2005, 10:43 AM
There's already one "no fun league", we don't really need another. Johnny Damon doesn't even look like Johny Damon anymore, he looks like all the other pinstriped dorks. And with the games lasting 3+ hours with all the pitching changes and everything, the last thing baseball needs is anything that makes it more boring.

You think baseball is boring? :confused:

jregensb
12-31-2005, 10:45 AM
...and don't forget Rick Mahler. If there was ever an argument for letting a man keep his beard, it was him. Yikes.

macro
12-31-2005, 11:12 AM
...and don't forget Rick Mahler. If there was ever an argument for letting a man keep his beard, it was him. Yikes.

http://reds.mlb.com/cin/photo/ph_90_mahlermug.jpg

And don't forget Jim Kern and Jeff Reardon, who also had to do some clipping and shaving before donning the red cap with the wishbone "C".

RollyInRaleigh
12-31-2005, 11:17 AM
Mahler didn't look any better with the beard. Was the only guy I didn't like at the fantasy camp. Ugly is as ugly does, and my total perception of Mahler was "Ugly."

Yachtzee
12-31-2005, 11:38 AM
http://reds.mlb.com/cin/photo/ph_90_mahlermug.jpg

And don't forget Jim Kern and Jeff Reardon, who also had to do some clipping and shaving before donning the red cap with the wishbone "C".

Remember when Rick Mahler grew his hair out, dyed it blonde, and tried out for the PBA?

http://www.new-video.de/da/3215.jpg

jregensb
12-31-2005, 11:45 AM
El-oh-el!!!111!!

westofyou
12-31-2005, 11:48 AM
Howsam prefered the uniform pants to be one uniform placement, he did a study on strikes and the placement of the uniform knees while he ran the Denver franchise, he firmly believed that the white socks and black shoes provided a great contrast for the ball crossing the plate below the stike zone and that was just one great reason to have unifoms that all were alike.

This was mentioned in Hub Walkers book "The Big Red Machine" which also had an interview with Chris Welsh on his expereince pitching on the Riverfront mound in the 70's while still going to St. X. Apparently he had to shave off his mustache before he could even toss the ball on the filed.

I'm fairly certain that Welsh gets his ideas about pants length from that book, hence why he is always commenting on Dunn's panst length and the low strike call.

WVRedsFan
01-01-2006, 01:24 AM
Dress Codes? I guess they started gaining steam since the Patriot Act?

I know one thing. Sacve every Red. Cut his hair. Make him wear his pants in a conventional manner. It's still a losing team. That's the bottom line.

I hated the Marge Schott-Bob Howsam rules. In the 70's when I was in my 20's, I had fashionably long hair. Not shoulder length, but in style for the times. Every preacher within 30 miles pointed at me and made me an example of an educated man gone wrong (I have proof of this, BTW). I was a school teacher at the time. Of course, I wore a suit and tie every day also. So much ballyhoo about hair. It just seems ludicrous to me.

So, in 2005 a music genre that many of you know nothing about now has a dress code. No suit no sing. No fresh haricut, no sing. No shave, no sing. The result? Some of the top groups no longer participate in their World Series. For hair?

I thought we had fought and won this battle, but apparently not. It's 1970 all over again. Sad.

Johnny Footstool
01-01-2006, 06:26 PM
Baseball is not the army.

Dress codes tend to come from small minds who think that by controlling certain aspects of a player's life, they can control everything. That's nonsense.

If a player is performing well, I don't care what he looks like. Dunn could show up in a Dior evening gown and I wouldn't care, as long as he keeps playing well.

remdog
01-01-2006, 07:21 PM
By Wheels: They could dress in tu tus and wear high heels for all I care.

The tu tus should cure the problem with the low strike zone. OTOH, the heels will make it tough to get down to first base in under 5 flat. ;)

I'm all for letting players express some individuality. I would just hope that they didn't take it to extreams. For instance, the 'pants dragging on the ground look' appears slovenly to me. I thought Damon's hair and beard was fine except that it got so long that it just started to look sloppy.

In the 70's I liked Rolly Fingers' mustache and disliked the blandness of the Reds. But there was no question which team I favored because I loved the way the Reds played the game.

Rem

dsmith421
01-02-2006, 01:36 AM
Forget hair and whiskers, the Reds should require our players to wear their pants bunched at the knee with long red stirrups over white socks on black shoes.

I have always cut Luke Hudson extra slack because he is dressed properly to play baseball. Dunn looks like he's wearing a set of pajamas.

Redsland
01-02-2006, 12:29 PM
It's called a uniform.

Team, not self, and all that.