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By Jeff Moore There is no time like the present to look back on the top trades from the past three off-seasons, as ranked by their impact on the baseball world in the time since. Here are the top five trades. Yesterday we looked at trades six through 10. As expected, hindsight is a powerful thing. 5 ??? Mets/Minnesota (2008): Johan Santana to the Mets for Carlos Gomez, Phillip Humber, Kevin Mulvey and Deolis Guerra There is no doubt that the jury is still out on this trade, and ultimately the winner will be determined by the eventually success of the four players Minnesota received. Opinions are still mixed on Gomez, who received the first significant playing time of his career in 2008 and showed flashes of brilliance mixed in with youthful inconsistency. The pitchers the Twins received will ultimately tell the tale, and so far the results are mixed, as Humber had a disappointing year repeating Triple-A, Guerra had an awful year and Mulvey was just ok in 2008. The Mets know what they have in Santana ??? a true ace who they have locked up for the prime of his career, and who is the type of player who upon arrival changed the dynamic in the entire National League. 4 ??? Arizona/Arizona/Oakland (2008): Dan Haren and Connor Robinson to Arizona for Brett Anderson, Dana Eveland, Greg Smith, Chris Carter, Aaron Cunningham and Carlos Gonzalez This trade gets bonus points for the sheer number of players involved and the ripple effect it continues to cause. The acquisition of Haren by the Diamondbacks was the initial wave, giving Arizona a 1-2 punch (along with Brandon Webb) that has yet to be rivaled in the National League. But this trade continues to evolve, as the A???s have since traded Smith and Gonzalez to the Rockies in the Holliday trade that thus far has marked this off-season. Carter continues to develop his power, and Eveland will be a rotation member for the A???s in 2009, but we could see further ripples if the A???s flip Holliday around to another team for more prospects. The final count on this trade has yet to be tallied, but for right now, it???s the trade that keeps on giving. 3 ??? Baltimore/Seattle (2008): Erik Bedard to the Mariners for Adam Jones, George Sherrill, Chris Tillman, Kam Mickolio and Tony Butler The Orioles make the list with their second 5 for 1 deal of the 2008 off-season, but this one will have far more significance than the Tejada deal. The influence of this trade is magnified by the total ineptitude of Erik Bedard and the rest of the Mariners team this past season, but even if Bedard had won the AL Cy Young, the Mariners might ultimately still have given up too much. As far as the Orioles rebuilding plan goes, they got two solid potential cornerstones in this deal, as well as two more players who will be factors. Jones showed why he was so highly touted in his first full season, and while his numbers were relatively pedestrian, he showed flashes of brilliance that have the Charm City excited. Chris Tillman broke out in Double-A and is on track to be a staple in the Baltimore rotation in the not too distant future. Sherrill emerged as a reliable closer for the Orioles, and while he is not likely the long term answer for the back of the Birds bullpen, his value has never been higher and it wouldn???t shock anyone to see him traded at some point between now and July 31st, 2009 and should bring back at least one solid piece of the Baltimore future in return. The O???s might even have hit on prospect Kam Mickolio, a 6???9??? behemoth of a pitcher with a power arm who could figure into the Orioles bullpen sometime next year. That???s a lot of building blocks given up by a franchise now desperately in need of them, and little to show for it in return. 2 ??? Philadelphia/Houston (2008): Brad Lidge to Philadelphia for Michael Bourn, Mike Costanzo and Geoff Geary Has any single acquisition in the past decade so directly and immediately led to a World Series victory the way Brad Lidge did for the Phillies in 2008? There is no discounting the ripple effect Lidge had on the Phillies. Between reorganizing the Philadelphia bullpen so the other members were in their proper places to (reluctantly) sending de facto closer Brett Myers back to the starting rotation where he belonged, the simple acquisition of Lidge solidified an entire pitching staff. Lidge, simply put, was perfect. Houston, on the other hand, got only 64 innings of middle relief (from Geary) out of their end of the deal, as Bourn failed to produce as the starting CF, hitting only .229 on the season and losing his job down the stretch. At least they managed to flip Costanzo as a throw-in in the Tejada deal. Certainly Lidge outperformed anybody???s expectations, but this was about as one-sided of a deal as we have seen in years. 1 ??? Boston/Florida (2006): Josh Beckett, Mike Lowell and Guillermo Mota to Boston for Hanley Ramirez, Anibal Sanchez, Jesus Delgado and Harvey Garcia Where do we start? At first glance, it???s easy to put this in the category of a wealthy team poaching the fire-sale Marlins of their expensive veteran talent, until you remember that Hanley Ramirez could be baseball???s best all-around offensive player. This was hardly a case of the Red Sox raiding the old man???s liquor cabinet. But the Red Sox could not have asked for more definitive results from a trade than getting the 2007 ALCS (Beckett) and WS MVP (Lowell) in the same deal. What made this deal so astonishing was the re-emergence of Lowell after it took place. Remember that Lowell was a throw-in to make the trade happen. The only way the Marlins would part with Beckett was if the Red Sox would take Lowell and his remaining $18 million dollars (over two years) of salary off their hands. That???s how bad Lowell???s 2005 season had been, when he fell off the proverbial cliff batting only .236 with 8 HR???s, after three straight years with at least 24 homers. No one anticipated Lowell???s resurgence upon arrival at Fenway, as he responded with two of his best seasons, and was rewarded with another big contract. Ramirez continues to produce phenomenal all around numbers in front of crowds more appropriate for professional bowling and the national spelling bee. What would the baseball landscape look like if Ramirez was being protected by David Ortiz in the heart of the Boston order and hitting balls off a Monster that is dark green rather than teal? Would the Red Sox have won the World Series in 2007 with a 3-4-5 of Hanley Ramirez, David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez, but no Josh Beckett? Would they have been able to come back in the ALCS without Beckett???s unbelievable performances? With that offense, would they be down 3 games to 1 in the first place? These are the questions we love to ask. They are the questions that have no answer, but spark debate while we wait for pitchers and catchers to report. This is why we love trades, and love the hot stove, and this is why we hang on every rumor and every move. Enjoy the trades and enjoy the turkey. Jeff Moore is the creator of mlbprospectwatch.com, a one-stop site for all information regarding baseball prospects and the minor leagues. Check back for daily updates on your team???s future stars.