Magic Number 108? Cubs numerologist says all signs point to this year

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Wrigley Field will be rocking Saturday night and as you tune in to the National League Championship Series there's a magic number you may want to keep in mind.

As most fans know, the Cubs last won the World Series in 1908; 108 years ago. And that number, 108, seems to keep turning up in significant Cubs events.

The biggest moment of the first playoff game against the Giants was Javier Baez's home run, the only run scored in the game. And it came on the 108th pitch.

Grant DePorter, president and managing partner of Harry Caray's Restaurant Group, may be the world's leading expert in Cubs numerology. He wrote a book on the subject, and a huge display in his restaurant documents the significance of number 108.

There's the number of stitches on a baseball: 108. The numbers of the last two Cubs inducted into the Hall of Fame, Ron Santo and Andre Dawson, add up to 108.

"Everywhere you look, it's 108. You just can't get away from it," DePorter said.

He could go on for days about the numbers. Some of the highlights:

-Wrigley Field was assigned planned development no. 108 in the city out of more than 1,300 assigned

-The Cubs' lawsuit for lights at Wrigley in 1988 is documented in volume 108 of the Supreme Court

-The distance to Wrigley foul poles in right and left fields is 108 meters

-The first World Series game at Wrigley was on October 8th, or 10/8

-The Cubs' last World Series game win was also on 10/8

DePorter believes the next win will be this year.

"In our lifetime, they've never been a better team," he said.

A couple final numbers: The Cubs' playoff games are all scheduled to start at 7:08 p.m. which in military time is 19:08. And the Cubs need to win four games to advance; with three outs per inning and 9 innings per game, barring any extra innings situations the Cubs need 108 outs to get to the World Series.

Click here to read DePorter's full list of Magic Number 108 occurrences.