MANILA, Philippines — As Addison Russell nears fulfilling every major league player's dream, his mother remembers making a simple wish when the Chicago Cubs infielder was a newborn.

That her baby would stay alive.

The Cubs sent the World Series to a deciding game set for Wednesday night (Thursday morning, Manila time), thanks to a historic game by Russell.

The 22-year-old All-Star infielder hit a grand slam in the third inning of Game 6, powering the Cubs to a 9-3 win over the Cleveland Indians. Russell's six RBIs in the game tied a World Series record held by three other players.

"Watching your son do his dream, it's surreal for all of us and we couldn't be more proud of him," said Russell's mom, Milany.

Adulation, fame and World Series records were furthest from Milany's mind when she gave birth to Addison, who was afflicted with respiratory problems as a baby. His condition was so dire he needed to stay in the ICU for two weeks when he was 3 months old. Milany said she thought her son wouldn't make it.

"His body wasn't digesting his formula. His body was rejecting it so it was throwing back in his lungs," Milany said.

"It's a very, very emotional situation when you're 19 years old and you have a son and he's gonna die on you and they're telling you to let go of him. And I refused to."

Milany, who hails from Olongapo City and calls Florida home, said that episode drew her closer to God. Her faith and the close-knit nature of her family are both Filipino values that she hopes to preserve, especially since Addison seems to thrive being raised in this environment.

"He's always in a good state of mind when family's around," Milany said. "His family is his strength."

Addison, who was voted to this year's All-Star game in only his second season in the majors, told ESPN.com that he has been preparing for big moments such as Game 6.

“It's kind of been throughout the whole year, being part of the Cubs, you're put in the limelight,” he said.

“And early on, you're forced to deliver whenever the game's kind of on the line. So having that practice throughout the whole season, and then, finally, here comes the big moment in the postseason, in the World Series. It's just, I wouldn't say it's bread and butter, but you definitely learn to control those feelings, so you're able to see the ball and able to think about pitch counts and all that stuff.”

Addison's feat has been splashed across major American news websites such as the New York Times and ESPN.

But now that her son has been thrust into the limelight, Milany isn't worried that success would get into Addison's head.

"I don't think that he is really aware of the magnitude of how much Filipinos are proud of our own because he is so humble about things," Milany said. "He doesn't look at himself as a super famous guy.

"He just thnks he's a normal kid who loves to play ball and living his dream."

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