We are only a few weeks away from the start of the 2007 baseball season. While Spring Training rolls on, The Lineup is here to give you fantasy insight on relevant topics happening in baseball. Here are five storylines you should be following this week:

When you think of San Francisco Giants reliever Armando Benitez, words such as "meltdown" or "choke artist" come to mind. Especially if you are a New Yorker. Still, the man has extensive closing experience, and according to a report in the San Jose Mercury News, "So many scouts came to see Armando Benitez on Tuesday night, one of them had to sit in the aisle." The suitors include the Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners and Florida Marlins. For fantasy purposes, Benitez looks pretty darn good. Check out his regular season career numbers of 280 saves, a 2.95 ERA, 1.196 WHIP and 880 strikeouts in just over 722 innings. It remains to be seen if the Giants are going to go ahead and try to seriously move the right-hander. But in a league where closers are notoriously up and down from year to year, Benitez is worth a fantasy roster spot, even if he stays put.

The Cincinnati Reds had a decision to make this off-season about whether Ken Griffey Jr. would be playing center or right field in 2007. But according to The Cincinnati Inquirer, "The question now is whether he will start Opening Day at all. For the first time this spring, Reds manager Jerry Narron mentioned the possibility that Griffey might not be ready to play in the April 2 opener against the Cubs." Griffey suffered a broken left hand while playing with his children in December. There had been talk of starting hard-nosed utility man Ryan Freel in center while shifting Griffey to right. That would aid Griffey’s fantasy value since he would be less of an injury-risk in right. News of this injury may open up the door for surprise story Josh Hamilton, the former No. 1 overall pick who has dazzled this spring with his superb hitting. Griffey's healthy holds the key.

The main intrigue surrounding the Philadelphia Phillies this Spring Training is what they'll do with their overstaffed starting rotation. The Chicago Tribune has specualated that the White Sox could acquire both starting pitcher Jon Lieber and former outfielder Aaron Rowand, "but it might cost them Joe Crede or Josh Fields — who looks ready to hit at the big-league level — or at the least Mike MacDougal, Rob Mackowiak and prospects." The White Sox would love to get Rowand. They had a difficult time filling his shoes in center field and Lieber would add veteran depth to their staff. A deal would help settle a couple of issues for the Phillies. Trading away Lieber would kill all the "Brett Myers to possibly close" talk. Should the Phillies get a reliable bullpen arm in return, it would add to closer Tom Gordon's fantasy value. Gordon had arguably the best closer's numbers in the first half of 2006 before fatigue and injury affected his pitching.

The Florida Marlins are currently having their in-house pitchers duke it out for the right to enter the 2007 season as the team's closer. However, they are still considering landing a closer via trade, and according to the East Valley Tribune, "Florida on Monday sent a scout to Hi Corbett Field to watch Jorge Julio, who retired six of the seven batters he faced in two scoreless innings." Julio has closing experience from his days with the Baltimore Orioles and even recorded 15 saves with the Arizona Diamondbacks last year while filling in for the struggling Jose Valverde. Since his rookie campaign in 2002 — when he posted a 1.99 ERA and 25 saves — Julio has never had a season ERA lower than 4.23. Julio has little fantasy value now, but if he lands in South Florida, grab him. The Marlins have a history of turning retreads into great fantasy closers.

The New York Mets have had to endure months of talk about how their starting rotation is the one obstacle standing in their way of a World Series run. The Mets have dismissed this notion, believing that the pitching competition in Spring Training will produce a quality staff. So far, the top four spots in the staff seem locked up by Tom Glavine, Orlando Hernandez, John Maine and Oliver Perez. But with that fifth spot still open, it looks as if top prospect Mike Pelfrey and veteran Chan Ho Park are the top candidates left standing. Despite his inexperience, the New York Post revealed, "Pelfrey continues to excite the people inside and around the Mets...his teammates and manager are highly impressed at what the 23-year-old has shown in his bid to win the fifth starter's job." For fantasy purposes, Chan Ho Park does little to stir up enthusiasm. Pelfrey, on the other hand, is an ideal sleeper pick as he is loaded with talent and would be pitching in front of one of the best lineups in baseball.