Expect a lot of bench clearing brawls this year.

New pitching coach Doug Brocail’s first order of business with his pitching staff is going to be to throw inside, challenge the hitters in, back them off the plate.

Or, as Brocail was quoted in The Dallas Morning News, they are going to “buy some real estate.”

The key to both—real estate and pitching, is location—location, location.  But whereas buying a house in the right neighborhood makes everyone comfortable, getting pitched to inside make batters angry.

They whine to umpires. Umpires issue warnings. Inside pitches continue. Benches empty. A baseball brawl ensues. Fifty players throw punches. None land. A lot of testosterone for nothing.

The first time Brocail met Jeff Banister, in fact, was when then got into a fight in A Ball when Brocail, a pitcher, confronted Banister, the hitter.

So Brocail heads into his first season as Rangers pitching coach. He comes from Houston. They have a guy named Dallas Keuchel. I’d say Brocail’s philosophy works.

Expect a lot of inside pitches thrown. And a lot of punches thrown. Neither will make contact with anything.