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The Phillies pitcher who doubles as clubhouse barber

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Another day of practice had finished Saturday, but there was still work to be done. Andres Blanco needed a haircut. He was in luck.

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Another day of practice had finished Saturday, but there was still work to be done. Andres Blanco needed a haircut. He was in luck.

Pedro Beato, a righthander trying to earn a spot in the Phillies bullpen, has claimed the job of clubhouse barber. He cut Blanco's hair in the washroom, just a few feet from Blanco's locker stall. Beato, a self-taught barber, showed Blanco pictures of cuts before getting to work. Beato started cutting hair 10 years ago when he was in the minor leagues. He works for tips.

"It started with guys going to places that were pretty bad and me going to places, having to pay for it, and getting someone that didn't put too much emphasis on it," Beato said. "I got mad about it and took it upon myself to learn."

Beato bought a barber kit and sought tips from teammates who knew how to cut hair. His start was filled with trial and error. Beato learned to be conservative and how to fix his own mistakes. The pitcher received a barber-school education inside the clubhouses of the low minors.

"It's pretty much like people that learn to do tattoos need carcasses," Beato said.

One of those carcasses happened to be Pedro Florimon, who joins Beato with the Phillies this spring. Beato continued his craft as his baseball career traveled the minor-league ladder, adding clients on each stop. Word quickly spread that the team had a barber. The biggest compliment came last season when teammates chose Beato over the barbers who came to the clubhouse.

"That's a good feeling that they think that I cut hair better than guys that actually do it," Beato said.

Beato has not reached the majors since 2014 when he pitched in three games with Atlanta. The 30-year-old found success the last two seasons with Baltimore's triple-A affiliate, registering a 2.65 ERA in 142 2/3 innings. Last season began with nine haircuts the day before opening day in Charlotte, N.C. It ended with 62 strikeouts and 24 walks in 68 innings.

Phillies camp has been open for less than a week, but Beato has already cut a dozen players' hair. Business is booming. Blanco received a high fade. The cut looked fresh, Blanco said. Edubray Ramos got a shape-up. Adam Morgan and Logan Moore had Beato clean their beards. Moore played with Beato in the Dominican winter league. Beato was the "hair guy" there, too, Moore said. Luis Garcia, who worked at a barbershop in 2011 when he was out of baseball, asked also Beato to trim his beard.

"I went over to see if he could trim my beard because the only way I know how to do it is just to cut it down," Morgan said. "But he took the time, cut off all the stray hairs and it was really nice."

Beato invested $150 last year on a silver briefcase that protect a few hundred dollars worth of blades and razors. The case is stored next to his locker, opening in the afternoon when Beato's barbershop opens. Beato carries the case everywhere, even lugging it on road trips. The case's next stop, Beato hopes, is the major leagues.

"That would be awesome," he said.

mbreen@phillynews.com

@matt_breen