Has It Really Been 10 Years Since My Most Memorable Mileage Moment?

5 days ago 29

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Over the years, I’ve earned and burned over 100 million miles, taking my family across the globe to explore our incredible world. We got to do so in first-class cabins and five-star hotels that would have otherwise cost millions of dollars. I challenge you to find a better hobby in the world!

But just as memorable as booking out an entire first-class cabin, taking a refreshing shower at 35,000 feet, having a couples suite on a plane, sleeping in an overwater bungalow, or exploring all 7 continents are the sports experiences that I’ve redeemed miles for.

I thought stealing 2nd base in middle of an Indians game would be my coolest mileage redemption ever, but it got way cooler than that.

18 years ago, on November 2nd, 2008, I got married to my wife Mimi. No, I couldn’t pay for the wedding with miles.

But, 10 years ago, on November 2nd, 2016, I did make my most memorable mileage redemption. I spent over a million SPG Starpoints to throw out the first pitch before the epic Game 7 of the 2016 World Series.

As a 6th generation Clevelander, I’ve been privileged to share decades of spending memorable summer nights with my grandfather, watching the Indians at the ballpark.

As much as the mileage hobby became my adulthood obsession and career, as a kid I was loved watching the Indians of the 90s playing amazing baseball and memorizing every player’s stats. Long before DansDeals won USAToday’s best miles and points blog, I was helping our 7th grade class at the Hebrew Academy of Cleveland win USAToday’s Baseball Weekly fantasy baseball competitions.

I dreamed of being called up to pitch in Game 7 of a World Series in Cleveland, but I was purely an academic nerd and didn’t have an ounce of athletic ability. I figured it would always remain a dream unless I became the Indians’ GM or manager.

Then came the SPG Moments auction from Starwood Preferred Guest in 2016, and I knew I’d have to win it. After all, miles are best used for aspirational or dream awards. Why else was I building a stash of tens of millions of miles, from opening countless credit cards to lugging hundreds of thousands of dollar coins to banks, if not for this moment?

Some people asked how I could justify going for it. For me, it was a question of how I could justify not going for it!

Darren Rovell pointed out at the time that I could have spent a month in an NYC hotel, but who’s dream is to spend a month in an overrated Manhattan hotel anyway? 😉

Daniel Eleff cashed in 1.06 million Starwood Starpoints for right to throw 1st pitch at Game 7. Points = 30+ nights at St. Regis New York.

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) November 2, 2016

Luckily, I hadn’t won the Starpoint auction for a trip to Antarctica, as that may have caused me to miss Game 7 of the World Series! When another auction didn’t come up for that, I did what I had to do and organized the first 21st-century kosher cruise to Antarctica so that I could check that off my bucket list.

The auction didn’t close until the morning of the game, and that day is just a blur. First, Jewish news outlets covered the story. And then somehow I was the top story on TMZ. Go figure.

It felt like a dream to be able to bring my grandfather, my brother JJ, and my wife on our anniversary night, onto the field before Game 7.

On Cloud 9:

After I threw out the first pitch, we got 2nd row seats, right behind the Cubs owners. Comparable tickets to what was included in the Starwood auction sold for tens of thousands of dollars each. Other tickets next to us were sold for $40,000 each! Too bad they didn’t just use Starpoints and get to throw out the first pitch as well! 😀

Someone just bought two seats right by the Cubs dugout for Game 7 on StubHub. Paid $19,900 each — and that does not include fees.

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) November 2, 2016

We got to game 7 at about 7pm, spent half an hour on the field, and threw out the first pitch at 7:30pm. After I got to toss the first pitch, Jim Thome got to throw a first pitch as well.

The game was one for the ages, though it didn’t end up the way I hoped. When Rajai Davis homered, it seemed like 68 years of waiting would soon be over.

When the ball left Jason Kipnis’ bat in the 9th, I was sure that it was all over.

Alas, a rain delay followed and the rest is history.

Cubbies fans got to see their first World Series win since 1908, but the Indians long drought continued.

Even just a couple weeks ago, I went to several games with my grandfather hoping we’d finally see a World Series win together, but it wasn’t meant to be. He was almost 10 when his parents took him to see the Indians play in the World Series the last time Cleveland won, back in 1948. And perhaps he was the only one who attended home games this postseason, who had also been there for the 1948 World Series.

But November 2nd, 2016 is still a night I’ll never forget.

I still grin from ear to ear just thinking about the entire experience.