Why Kentucky’s NCAA Championship Means the Yankees Will Win the World Series
April 2, 2012 · Kenny DeJohn · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
The Kentucky Wildcats are the 2012 NCAA champions; they defeated the Kansas Jayhawks by a score of 67-59 to win the eighth men’s basketball title in team history.
Many of you are surely wondering how their victory relates to the New York Yankees.
In reality, it really doesn’t.
But in the land of irrelevant sports facts, here are six reasons why their victory does—1949, 1951, 1958, 1978, 1996 and 1998.
What do those years represent?
Not only are they six of the eight years that Kentucky has won the NCAA National Championship, they are six of the years that the Yankees have won the World Series.
Trust me, it’s legit. Look it up.
The Yankees were seen as the underdogs in 1949 under the management of Casey Stengel. They finished just one game ahead of the Boston Red Sox at 97-55 and won the AL pennant.
They also won the World Series.
Mickey Mantle made his debut in 1951 and helped the Yankees to a 98-56 record, five games better than the second-place Cleveland Indians.
They won the World Series again.
The Yankees suffered a down season in 1958, but luckily so did the rest of the American League. With a 92-62 record, the Yankees finished 10 games ahead of the 82-72 Chicago White Sox.
That year they won their 24th pennant and 18th World Series.
The 1978 Yankees were one of the most persistent teams in baseball history. After being 14.5 games back in July, the Yankees ended up forcing a one game playoff with the Red Sox. Obviously, they won.
Do you want to know what else they won?
The World Series.
After an 18-year drought, the Yankees made it back to the World Series to face the Atlanta Braves in 1996. They were down two games to one before winning four consecutive games to win the title.
In arguably the greatest season in Yankees’ history, the team won an astounding 114 games in 1998 en route to their sweep of the San Diego Padres in the World Series.
Is it a logical fallacy to say that the Yankees will win the World Series just because the Kentucky Wildcats won the national title?
Yes, unfortunately it is.
Is it a relevant truth that the Yankees happen to win the World Series when the Wildcats win the national title?
Yes, it is.
In the end, we’ll have to see how the season plays out.
Even before the season has begun, though, it looks as if the Yankees may have a little extra help on their side.
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