Thanks for all the replies and tips.

I'm still not certain after reading these posts which path I should follow. I want the SPG Amex since it's a once a year deal, but also want to hit Chase up for a no minimum spend card. I want to keep my spending manageable.

The AA card I had mentioned in my post was a targeted offer of 35K after $1K in spend. I know I could probably hit $6k in the next few months so that's why I chose the cards I mentioned.

What would you do in my situation? Are the upgrade vouchers from Hyatt really worth delaying the apps?

Thanks.