New closer Devin Williams and several former Yankees stars helped nudge owner Hal Steinbrenner into changing the franchise's decades-old policy on facial hair.

The Yankees amended their facial hair policy after it had been a topic of internal conversation for around 10 years.

The All-Star closer, acquired in a trade with the Brewers over the offseason without any say in the matter, said that the Bombers’ past ban on facial hair below the upper lip would have been a factor in free agency. The Yankees amended the policy on Friday to permit “well-groomed beards,” an announcement that shocked the baseball world.