Let It Rip Sports: Owner's Baseball Dream Reborn at New Location

This summer, Andy Paszko and Kim Baker had to bench their business, .

The brother-and-sister owners hadn't lost any of their desire to run the indoor baseball and fast-pitch softball training facility, but when the terms of the lease at their old location changed and they couldn't find a suitable replacement location, the two called it quits.

"That place was my life," said Paszko, who is also a coach for 's baseball team. "I was there through December (to) April, May, seven days a week. It became my life. ... To build up to that point and and all of the sudden have it fall from underneath me, that was it. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I wanted to do nothing."

However, a chance meeting between a local banker and Paszko and Baker's father, Dennis, turned things around. After looking futilely for months for a new space for Let It Rip, Paszko and Baker checked out a location on Laraway Road that the banker said had just gone on the market and seemed ideal. The two checked it out, and Paszko's dream was revived.

"You looked, and my heart almost started pounding, and I was like 'Oh my God, I can just look at this place and imagine what could be,' " he said. "All of a sudden I got that fire and thought about all the stuff we could offer. I had that life back in me."

Paszko's baseball fever started early in his life. He was always out on the diamond--from tee-ball on up--which led him to participating at the Division I college level, playing first base for Chicago State University. After graduating, he thought about leaving baseball behind, but he couldn't leave the sport behind.

"I kicked around a couple of 9-to-5 jobs, and it wasn't for me," he said. "I wanted back in baseball."

That was the genesis of the original Let It Rip Baseball, which opened in 2007 on Vans Drive in Frankfort. ( is now in that location.)

"It was always something we threw around as a family, because I was so involved in baseball," Paszko said. "It was something the family always talked about after going in and seeing other facilities that I would go to. Man, we could make one that was better than all these places, places my mom would hate taking me to because it was like sitting in a dungeon. ... We wanted to create a family business approach."

"We wanted an environment where you walk in, and it's warm and cozy," Baker added.



Pazsko chose Frankfort at the time because the housing market was booming, and the southern location was a prime spot to take advantage of that expansion. Although the boom subsided in 2009, Let It Rip established itself in the community as a place to go for baseball and fast-pitch softball instruction, Pazsko said. But that didn't happen overnight.

"We had to do a lot of legwork just getting our name out," he said. "We came into an area with a lot of established facilities already. ... We were the new kid on the block. We didn't have a reputation. We didn't know anybody. We came in blind."

With an established customer base (Baker said she's been fielding constant calls and e-mails from clients asking when they're reopening), Paszko said he wanted to expand and evolve the business. Next year, a basketball court will be added to the facility, and he's exploring using the space for lacrosse and pee-wee football training, as well. Baker said they also will be hosting birthday parties eventually.

Let It Rip also has upgraded its baseball and softball facility thanks to the new location's added space. Along with six batting cages, there is an 80-by-90 foot infield area where teams can practice. Four instructors with college-level experience, counting Paszko, are already on staff, and Paszko said he's in talks to hire a few more. Let It Rip also will have a pro shop with an expanded inventory. By summer, Paszko said he hopes to have some other new additions.

"Ultimately, we want to be your one-stop place," Baker said. "You can come in and work in the cages. You can get lessons from our instructors who have experience and knowledge. We can get you prices on your team apparel and custom apparel. ... We want to accomplish anything and everything for our customers."

Let It Rip Sports is officially open, but it's grand opening week begins Monday, Dec. 12. The facility is set up for the most part, although Paszko and Baker are still doing some cosmetic work on the building. That process has been a whirlwind of activity, working 13 to 14 hour days, seven days a week over six weeks to get ready.

"I've done things I did not know I was capable of doing," Baker said, laughing.

"There was many a night you'd go home and couldn't move your hands, had to soak the feel for a while," Paszko added. "If anybody were to see what this building looked like the first day we moved in here, people wouldn't believe it."

Let It Rip Sports Grand Opening Week

Here's a list of activities and deals being offered throughout the week:

• Monday, Dec. 12: Half-price for a half-hour on cages ($8.50).
• Tuesday, Dec. 13: Demo Day. Come in every hour to do 15-minute rotations through the facility, which will include instruction on the batting cages, pitching, infield and conditioning. Starts at 4 p.m. and runs until 8 p.m. $10 per person.
• Wednesday, Dec. 14: No activities.
• Thursday, Dec. 15: Half-price for a half-hour on cages ($8.50).
• Friday, Dec. 16: Skills Challenge. Customers in three age groups (8 years old and younger; 9-12; and 13 and older) will compete in a variety of drills. The player with the best results in each age group will get unlimited use of the batting cages for a month. $10 per person.
• Saturday, Dec. 17: Instructor Day. Customers can meet the instructors, see what the facility has to offer and go through drills for baseball and fast-pitch softball. $15 per person.