The Yankees Have Discovered the Transformative Power of Human Touch
Outfielder Cameron Maybin’s ‘hugs for homers’ challenges traditional notions of masculinity, and experts say that’s a very good thing
Cameron Maybin is hitting a solid .284 for the Yankees, but the outfielder’s most winning contribution to his team is the hugs he delivers in the dugout.
After each homerun, players walk through the dugout getting high fives, then get one last reward: a warm embrace from Maybin. Now fans are hugging in the stands, too, and even making T-shirts to commemorate this new baseball tradition.
“Hugging just makes people feel good,” Maybin told the New York Times. “Everybody needs a good hug sometimes. Even when you don’t think you want one.”
He’s right. And beyond building team spirit, hugs could actually be fueling the Yankees’ winning streak. A 2010 University of California-Berkeley study of the NBA showed that basketball players and teams that hugged more at the beginning of the season played better all season long. In 2012, the Wall Street Journal reviewed 25 hours of that year’s Olympics to measure the U.S.’s “touchiest” team: It was men’s volleyball, which beat out even women’s volleyball for displays of affection — and made it to the…
