Prior to March 2, 2007, Bartlett already had one of the nation’s largest Little League programs.

But on that date, the village — and those in nearby communities — got a boost with the opening of The Hitting Zone, which sits just three miles from one of the league’s primary game locations, Apple Orchard Community Park.

Two years later, the facility’s success is built on more than bats and balls. The Hitting Zone founders feel they have created a sense of community within their batting cages.

“I went to a place for six years and they couldn’t tell me what my name was after I spent a lot of money and brought a lot of teams in there,” said Cary Wick, who co-owns The Hitting Zone with fellow Bartlett residents Dan Kenna and Jim Stancl. “It was an impersonal place. That (personal touch was) something we felt was really lacking.”

The three owners had an important insider’s perspective on the heartbeat of baseball in Bartlett.

“All three of us came up through the Bartlett Little League system when our kids played T-ball and all that,” Wick said. “My son played for Dan. Jim and I have coached together on all-star teams and against each other many times, so we’ve been friends for a long time through Bartlett Little League.”

Though Bartlett is a longtime Little League hotspot, quality indoor practice facilities were scarce before The Hitting Zone.

So Kenna, Wick and Stencl decided to open their own indoor facility, something easier said than done.

“From the initial ‘Let’s go’ to opening, it was probably about two years,” Kenna said. “We definitely wanted it to be in Bartlett. We found a spot in the same place but we were involved with an out-of-state owner who kind of screwed us.”

After scouting locations, putting in months of hard work on the finishing touches and having a slight delay opening because of an issue with the Village of Bartlett, the doors swung open on The Hitting Zone, and the impact was immediate.

“The day we opened I went to get our license from the village at 11:30 in the morning on a Friday when school was out,” Wick said. “I called Dan to tell him to open the doors, and you could hear people cheering as they came in.”

“We were absolutely packed the first weekend,” Kenna said.

The facility also boasts top-notch baseball and softball instructors, who played the game. Catching and hitting instructor Chris Wilmot played semi-pro in college and with the Schaumburg Flyers in 2005 and 2006.

Pitching instructor Rick DeHart played with the Montreal Expos and Kansas City Royals from 1997-2003 as part of a professional career that spanned 16 seasons.

Private pitching instructor Juan Acevedo enjoyed a successful major league career and is pitching in the Mexican League. He will return to The Hitting Zone after the season.

“Every trainer that’s worked with us makes it a fun atmosphere — we have phenomenal instructors — that’s such a big plus for us,” Wick said. “They represent us well in the community. They’re in here smiling, enjoying what they do. I’ve been to places where the guys are frowning and spitting sunflower seeds into a bucket the whole time. That’s no fun for the kids. Make it fun for the player who’s trying to get better. That’s always been our motto: Get better but have fun doing it.”

In addition to five batting cages that can be used for baseball and softball practice and a plethora of instructors, there are hitting leagues, dodgeball leagues, equipment sales, space for team meetings, birthdays and fundraisers and five training tunnels that can be converted into a 70- by 72-foot infield practice area.

But what really makes The Hitting Zone unique is the personal touch.

“On any night out of 250 people who might walk through our door, we have coached, played against or know the parents of 200 of those kids,” Wick said. “It comes down to that. We know them so well we can call them by their first names and that’s why we’ve been successful.”

“You see these kids in here all the time working and getting better,” Kenna said. “That’s the big thing. They have somewhere to go to get better.”

By the numbers

$5 Cost for six batting cage tokens; packages go up to 150 tokens for $100

$40 Cost per hour to rent tunnel or cage; $35 per hour for two- to nine-hour rentals

SOURCE: thehzone.com