Alex Rios: Excruciating? Sure. Untradeable? Probably.

This morning on the FAN590, Keith Law mentioned Vernon Wells as being one piece of the Blue Jays' puzzle that he considered to be absolutely untradeable. It is tough to disagree with Law's reasoning. Vernon's 7 year/$126 million extension was considered a little over the top back in '06, now, it looks like a joke. The guy that has become a mediocre power threat and an above-average fielder was once the one player that Blue Jays' management wanted to overpay to keep in Toronto. As of now, it looks like trading Wells would amount to little more than a salary dump, if it could be completed at all.We look to be headed down the same path with Alex Rios. Putting aside his disdainful Youtube incident and wreckless play in the field, this guy was once promised as a five tool player. At this point, Jays fans would be happy with him displaying one tool. I once remarked that his contract that signed him through to 2014 made him a legitimate bargain. This was back when we thought that we had the next Carlos Beltran on our hands. Instead, Rios is now mentioned in the same breath as Vernon Wells, a guy slumping his way to yet another dismal year. While we have seen Adam Lind, Scott Rolen, Lyle Overbay and especially Aaron Hill flourish under new a new coaching staff, Rios' offense has been non-existent. He has shown a slight blip when he was first moved into the 6-hole, and has seen his average jump ten points since then, but this was much more than the Jays needed out of him.This raises the question: is Alex Rios untradeable? With the Jays still in the thick of things, JP Ricciardi has claimed that if this team hangs tough, they will be buyer's at the trade deadline. Everyone remembers the Rios for Lincecum deal that fell through because JP did not want to give up his prized up and comer. Clearly, JP needs to be given a pass on that because that trade never would have been on the table unless it was generally perceived that Rios was a star in the making. But with Rios' performance and contract being what they are right now, could the Jays even deal him for a starter that could make the rotation? Probably not. Just like we saw with Wells, Rios' dip into mediocrity has been every bit as painful and frustrating for Jays fans and is becoming yet another example of JP's inability to spend wisely. It was understood that if Rios' performance was better than last year, that he would be a valuable trade chip to a team who could handle his contract and had reliable pitching or a big bat to give up in return. Now, if the Jays want to make a move in July, they would likely have to sacrifice one of their young pitchers that have been surprising bright spots this season. And if management ends up giving away Brett Cecil because no one was interested in Rios, then Alex has an entirely new reason to apologize to Jays fans.