Japan Series matchup puts surprising trade back in spotlight

 Trades are not normally as big a part of Japanese baseball as in MLB, but the biggest swap of the season will be among the notable storylines when the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks clash in this year’s Japan Series.

The BayStars and Hawks executed a three-player deal in May that sent catcher Yudai Yamamoto to Fukuoka in exchange for pitcher Shuto Ogata and infielder Tomoya Inoue, who ended up in Yokohama.

Now, months later, the principles of that deal will come together in the Japanese Fall Classic.