MLB issues media dress guidelines

Well…at least they don’t have to worry about banning flannel. Huh, ohh.

Muscle shirts, ripped jeans and flip-flops—fine for the beach, not so fine for big league press boxes starting next season.

Baseball has become the first major pro league in North America to issue dress guidelines for media members, putting them in writing at the winter meetings.

The no-wear list also includes visible undergarments, excessively short skirts or anything with a team logo.

“This is not in response to any single incident,” MLB spokesman Pat Courtney said Tuesday.

...The media should dress “in an appropriate and professional manner” with clothing proper for a “business casual work environment” when in locker rooms, dugouts, press boxes and on the field, the new MLB rules say.

Banned are sheer and see-through clothing, tank tops, one-shouldered or strapless shirts or clothing exposing bare midriffs. Also listed in the guidelines are skirts, dresses or shorts cut more than 3-4 inches above the knee.

...At 81, former Marlins manager Jack McKeon has seen dress codes change a lot during more than a half-century in the game. Especially at warm-weather ballparks during the hottest summer months.

“I remember the old days, when even the people in Triple-A would wear a coat and tie,” he said. “Now, it’s casual. Less than casual, really,” he said.

“Today, it can look pretty sloppy,” he said. “But that’s not just baseball. It’s generational.”

Thanks to C. Treadway.