Fame is new to Russell
World Series hero still stunned by honors, adulation.
MESA, ARIZ. — Addison Russell was laying on his mom’s bed in the house he bought the family in Pensacola, Florida, with his signing bonus. His Shih Tzu-poodle mix puppy, Oakley, started licking his face. Tears started flowing. “That’s when all the memories from this past year, from spring training to the middle of the season, then the World Series run,” the C h i c a go C u b s s h o r t s t o p rec alled. “It all hit me at once. It was overbearing. I started crying. That’s when it sunk in, this offseason. It was just a magical moment.”
The 23-year-old Russell, acquired in the July 2014 trade that sent Jeff Samardzija to Oakland, made his Cubs debut in April 2015. He hit mostly hit ninth in the order but got hurt and missed the NL Championship Series.
He moved to the middle of the order last season and responded with 21 home runs and 95 RBIs to become the youngest Cubs All-Star. He went on to become the you nge s t pl aye r t o hi t a World Series grand slam since Mickey Mantle (1953) and tied the Series mark with six RBIs in a game.
“He is a quiet kid, but he puts his work in and is one of the hardest workers,” teammate Kris Bryant said. “He is young and that work he has already put in is setting him up for super-stardom.”
Ru s s e l l i s s t i l l g e t t i n g used to that status off the diamond. He was given an honorary key to the city by Pensacola. There were two separate Addison Russell Day celebrations during the offseason, including one at Pace High School, his alma mater.
“This whole fame thing is completely new to me,” he said. “Walking into an airport, people want autographs in different airports in different cities. It’s very humbling. I’m just a smalltown guy. It hit me pretty hard.”