Yankees great Don Mattingly once spoke about his main gripe with his infamous haircut benching saga

MLB All-Star Don Mattingly is the Toronto Blue Jays' bench coach. Mattingly played with the New York Yankees for the entirety of his 14-year MLB career before managing the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Miami Marlins.

In 1991 Mattingly once benched for refusing to cut his hair. In 2014 Mattingly reflected on the haircut benching, as reported by True Blue LA.

"I'll tell you what my main gripe was. Everybody - well I shouldn't say everybody - but a lot of guys had long hair," Mattingly remembered. "That was my fight right there."

He was one of four New York Yankees players suspended, along with pitchers Pascual Perez and Steve Farr and catcher Matt Nokes (and manager Stump Merrill).

If the Yankees sign a player, whether through a trade, the draft, or free agency, it is assumed that one has to shave his beard. Gerrit Cole's lengthy hair and beard had to go when the Yankees acquired the coveted star in 2019.

“I haven’t shaved in like 10 years, but you know what? So be it,” Cole said shortly after joining the club. “That’s the way it is. If you’re a Yankee, you shave. That’s what’s up.

"I woke up this morning, got a shave and came here. The guy who does it in the clubhouse just came to the hotel and dialed me in.”

Mattingly did not get traded, completed his contract, and, at the age of 34, retired following the 1995 season.

Don Mattingly once managed a group of employees with a wide variety of haircuts and beards

Don Mattingly managed the Los Angeles Dodgers for five years and the Miami Marlins for seven. Hair grooming guidelines were absent from the Dodgers and thus varied accordingly.

"How it started how it’s going - Talkin' Yanks

Justin Turner claimed that the Baltimore Orioles had regulations for facial hair when he played there. He also said that facial hair was often prohibited in the minor leagues.

Miami Marlins v Washington Nationals

Similar to other minors players, Scott Van Slyke recalled the rule that anything more than two days of growth had to be shaved. His beard was perhaps the fullest on the team.

"Mattingly changes facial hair policy this season. Marlins players can have facial hair, but they must keep it 'groomed and professional.'" - Will Manso

The Yankees retired Don Mattingly's uniform number (23), marking him as the only Yankee to do so without having participated in a World Series championship.