The club became part of the Midwest League in 1960 and was affiliated with the Milwaukee Braves for its first two seasons before joining the farm system of the new Los Angeles (later California) Angels for the 1962 season. Except for a five-year affiliation with the Chicago Cubs (1979-84), the Angels stayed in the Quad Cities through the 1992 season. The team was affiliated with the Houston Astros from 1993 to 1998 and has been affiliated with the Minnesota Twins since 1999.
The team used the nickname of its major-league parent through the 1991 season. It was known as the Quad City River Bandits from 1992 through the 2003 season. On October 20, 2003, the team was renamed the Swing of the Quad Cities; the nickname, like the previous one, was chosen as the winning entry in a "name the team" contest.
The club's home ballpark is John O'Donnell Stadium, located on the Mississippi River in downtown Davenport. Built in 1930 as Municipal Stadium, it was renamed for a former local sportswriter in 1970. The park has received positive reviews for its view of the river, but the river has also created problems as the field was completely submerged during the floods of 1993 and 2001, forcing the team to play in other parks. In 2002 the Davenport city council approved plans for the renovation of John O'Donnell Stadium, which would bring the facility to modern professional baseball standards. One of those plans calls for the construction of a nine-foot-high berm around the outfield fence that would provide flood protection for the park and a lawn seating area for fans. The renovated stadium is scheduled to open in time for the 2004 season.
The team's attendance record of 260,471 was set in 1994.
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