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| Your Ballpark Guide |
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John O'Donnell Stadium /
Swing of the Quad Cities
| Year Built | 1931; renovated 2004 |
| Capacity | 5,500 |
| Dimensions | 340L, 390C, 340R |
| Last Visit | August 2002 |
| Web Site | www.swingbaseball.coml |
| Online Broadcasts | Yes |
| Online Ticket Sales | Yes |
| Phone | 563/324-3000 |
| League | Midwest League |
| Level | Class A |
| Affiliation | Minnesota Twins |
| Ticket Prices | Box seats, $7; general admission, $5; student and senior general admission, $4. |
| Parking | Three adjoining parking lots provide ample and free parking. |
| Address/Directions | 209 S. Gaines Street, Davenport. The stadium is located on the west side of downtown Davenport. River Drive runs along the south side of downtown Davenport and the Mississippi River, and the ballpark is at the corner of Gaines Street and River Drive. |
| Rating |  |
News about John O'Donnell Stadium / Swing of the Quad Cities ----->
| Description |
John O'Donnell Stadium is one of the oldest ballparks in minor-league baseball,
but it combines a load of charm with the type of historical design you
don't see much anymore. It combines location with a grandstand layout that
used to be the predominant design among Midwest ballparks: a curved,
covered grandstand with two levels of seating, and bleachers located down
each line. In addition, a railroad line runs down the third-base line of John O'Donnell Stadium,
and a bridge to Rock Island runs along the first-base line. With twin
scoreboards designed to resemble riverboats and a spectacular view of
scenic downtown Davenport,
John O'Donnell Stadium is definitely one of the more pleasant stadiums in the
Midwest League and in the Upper Midwest.
Located
on the shores of the Mississippi River,
John O'Donnell Stadium benefits from its scenic locale (which includes a view of
one of the many floating riverboat casinos scattered throughout Iowa), but
that locale has a downside: when the Mississippi River flooded in 2001, it
forced the River Bandits to play many games in Clinton and a local
college. While the flood might be a once-in-a-lifetime event, it did lead
city and team officials to question whether the stadium is a long-term
proposition or whether a new stadium should be built elsewhere in the
city. The decision was made to improve
John O'Donnell Stadium, to the tune of a $10 million makeover. While the exact
extent of the renovations need to be determined, the city in the summer of
2002 did move ahead with HOK Sport to outline the scope of the project. It
would be a shame to lose
John O'Donnell Stadium; there simply are not many stadiums left from the 1930s,
and when a stadium like
John O'Donnell is still economically viable, renovation is clearly the best
choice.
John O'Donnell Stadium as it stands right now is not the same as the
John O'Donnell Stadium built in the 1930s. It was extensively renovated in 1989,
adding office space to the second level of the grandstand and installing
six rows of stadium-style seats along the field. In addition, there have
been several additions down both lines. The first-base-line area features
a grill and kids' area, while the third-base-line area features a picnic
area and a deck for groups. While the stadium area is hemmed in by the
railroad tracks, highway, and river, you never feel like you're crammed
into a small space at the ballpark.
There aren't many bad seats in the house. I sat directly behind the dugout and had a terrific view of the action, and I also spent some time in the backed bleachers. (There are six rows of stadium seats and 19 rows of bleachers, so at the farthest away from the field you are only 25 rows back.) As the grandstand is so close to the actual playing diamond, you can't go wrong with any of the grandstand seats. You will want to avoid the rickety bleachers down the third-base line: they don't feel that secure and they are of an older design that has been outlawed by many states (including Minnesota).
One odd thing about John O'Donnell Stadium: it is the only baseball stadium I have ever visited that didn't smell like a ballpark -- from my seats behind the dugout, I couldn't smell popcorn or hot dogs or hamburgers. Instead, there was a smell of motor oil and dirt and gasoline -- the same smell back at the family farm. It seems appropriate for an industrial city that fueled the modern farm economy to have a stadium that smelled like a tractor shed.
| History |
Baseball has been a popular pastime in the Quad Cities since the turn of the century. Of the four quad cities, three -- Davenport, Moline, and Rock Island -- have hosted various minor-league teams since the turn of the century in the Three-I, Western and Midwest Leagues. The River Bandits have been around since 1992, although the Quad City franchise has been around since 1961 and played under the names of the Angels, Braves, and Cubs. The stadium's first inhabitant was a team in the Mississippi Valley League.
Many of the teams took their nicknames from their
major-league affiliates, but a look through the team histories shows the
likes of the Davenport Blue Sox, DavSox, Knickerbockers, Prodigals, Quads, River Rats,
and Riversides; Rock Island Rocks and Rock Island Islanders; and
Moline Plowboys. The best of these nicknames is the
Davenport Onion Weeders, a 1888 entrant in the Western League (the
predecessor of the American League).
| Concession Highlights |
The first-base grill area and the picnic deck feature hamburgers, hot dogs, brats, and chicken sandwiches.
Those sitting in the grandstand area are lucky enough to have a waitress serving your concession needs.
| Smoking |
| For the Kids |
| Parking |
| Before the Game |
And what caused that boom? The economic rise of agribusiness and the implements needed to compete efficiently in that era. For most farmers, that meant farm machinery. When I was a kid, the name Moline meant one thing to me -- farm tractors. As it ends up, the Quad Cities was the seat of modern farming machinery, and there are many ways you can learn about the history of said machinery. (OK, I admit that museums devoted to farming machinery is not for everyone, but these histories are important when learning about the history of our country.)
Two major farm-implement companies had their starts in the Quad Cities. Minneapolis-Moline -- the company that made the orange and yellow tractors -- had its roots in the Moline Implement Company. There's no tribute to the Moline Implement Company, unfortunately; it basically ceased operations in Moline when it merged with two Minneapolis companies to form Minneapolis-Moline in 1929. A smaller tillage-tools operation stayed in Moline, while the main manufacturing plant and corporate headquarters moved to the Minneapolis area.
Instead, you have several shrines to John Deere -- the implement company that stayed behind in Moline. (For those of you who identify farm equipment by its color, John Deere makes the green tractors, and International Harvester makes the red ones.) Downtown Moline's riverfront has been extensively redevelopment in recent years, and part of that redevelopment is the addition of John Deere Commons. John Deere's history is told at the John Deere Pavilion, which features exhibits on the history of John Deere, and the John Deere Collectors Center, designed to look like a classic 1950's John Deere dealership.
Tractors were stored in machine sheds, so here's a perfect transition to the restaurant that sums up all food Midwest: Machine Shed (7250 Northwest Blvd., Davenport; right off I-80 at the 292 exit). The angle here is that Machine Shed honors the American farmer by serving traditional farm-style fare. We're talking burnt ends (barbequed beef tips), fried chicken, pork chops, country-fried steak, roast-beef sandwiches, steaks of every size and cut, and more. Definitely not the sort of thing you can chow down for every meal, but mighty tasty.
If
you didn't consume enough cholestorol at the Machine Shed, you
also should check out Whitey's
Ice Cream, found at 12 locations throughout the Quad Cities. Iowa
rules when it comes to real ice cream: Wells Blue Bunny is the second-best
mass-produced ice cream on the market (Brown's -- the Minnesota Brown's,
not the Maine Brown's -- is the best), and most larger communities in Iowa
will have their own ice-cream shops. Whitey's has been serving up ice
cream since 1933, and that good Iowa milk makes Whitey's ice cream a
special treat. The various Whitey's locations sell sundaes, malts,
smootheys, and a host of funky flavors (like White Tiger Paws and Peanut
Butter Pretzel), but my favorite is a plain vanilla cone. (Note to River
Bandits management: you'd be smart to persuade the Whitey's folks to open
up an ice-cream stand at the renovated JOD.)
| After the Game |
Otherwise, there's not much else within walking
distance of the stadium. Consider driving back up River Drive and head for
the small village of East Davenport. The area around Jersey Ridge Road and
11th Street features a number of neighborhood bars, including the Bier
Stube.
| Where to Stay |
News about John O'Donnell Stadium / Swing of the Quad Cities ----->