TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — The New York Yankees have amended their long-standing policy forbidding players from having facial hair.

Yankees Managing General Partner Hal Steinbrenner released a statement Friday morning stating that players are now allowed to have “well-groomed beards” when they appear on the field.

“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,” Steinbrenner said. “These most recent conversations are an extension of ongoing internal dialogue that dates back several years.”

The amended policy applies to players and other uniformed personnel.

“It is the appropriate time to move beyond the familiar comfort of our former policy,” Steinbrenner said.

The Yankees’ policy, which also forbid players from having hair that reached their shoulders, dates back to the 1970s. Then-franchise owner and military veteran George Steinbrenner implemented the policy to instill a sense of discipline in his players.

The rule has long been criticized by sportswriters and fans, as well as some Yankees players, as outdated. The change comes ahead of the team’s first spring training game against the Tampa Bay Rays.