Derek Stepan going to arbitration would be really, really, really, really bad. Did I say really bad yet? I'll do it again to be safe: really bad.
The Derek Stepan negotiations have taken a dramatic turn, with neither side coming to an agreement just hours before Stepan's 9 a.m. arbitration hearing is scheduled to begin.
I want to start by explaining the arbitration process to those who don't know what it is: Both the player and the team go into a meeting before an arbitrator with a cap-hit they're looking for. In this case, the Rangers are asking the arbitrator to award Stepan with a $5.