Beard-growing a group effort in Diamondbacks clubhouse

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The grass at Salt River Fields is trimmed close. As Archie Bradley strides across it on his way to the mound for his first Cactus League start of the spring on Thursday, he is not nearly as neat.

Bradley’s jawline is covered in thick, reddish-brown whiskers. He hasn’t touched a razor since Halloween and doesn’t have any plans to shave in the near future.

“I’ve gotten a lot of compliments on it; not too many complaints,” he said. “My mom likes it, which is always important. So far so good.”

Pictures from last season show a clean-shaven Bradley, reflective of a time he doubted he’d ever go the bearded route. He only planned to let it grow during “No-Shave November.”

But fellow pitcher Robbie Ray persuaded him to let it grow.

“Robbie had one most of (last) season and he was like – ‘Hey man why don’t you grow one with me?’ ” Bradley said. “I’m like, ‘dude, I’ve never grown a beard. I don’t know I’d like it.’ ”

Now, among the bearded and the beardless in the Diamondbacks clubhouse, it is accepted that Bradley and Ray sport the best whiskers.

“It takes a special face. You know, not every face can grow a beard,” Bradley said. “It has kind of created it’s own personality now; it’s its own person now. I like it. We will see how long it lasts.”

So burly is his his beard, there is a twitter account devoted to it.

@DBackBeard wow! My own beard has a twitter page! #beardgoals

— Archie Bradley (@ArchieBradley7) February 14, 2017

But growing a beard is the easy part, at least for the right face. Maintaining the chin mane is another thing.

“You wash it two or three times a week and make sure you put oil in it everyday just to make sure it keeps its’ softness about it,” said Ray, who’s kept the look going for about four years. “It can get kind of brittle and stringy so you have just got to take care of it.

Pitcher Daniel Gibson also flaunts full scruff.

“I think most people who don’t have a beard want to grow a beard,” he said. “I’d say there’s a good amount of people here that wish they could grow a beard, even if it was just for a day, just to see how it feels. I guess I’m just a lucky one.”

Then there’s Tom Wilhelmsen whose facial hair falls somewhere between stubble and the full look.

“I’d like to grow it out a little bit more but my wife won’t appreciate that too much so this is as long as it’s going to be,” he said.

The beards are just another way for the Diamondbacks to connect in the clubhouse.

“Everyone has their own unique beard here,” Ray said.

Whether it’s based on superstition or a simply a sense of style, Bradley has become an advocate. His advice?

“Let it grow,” he said.