The Rays left pitcher Aneury Rodriguez off their 40-man roster. For an adventurous team, that could mean taking him in the upcoming Rule V draft. But, obviously, that comes with risk. The selecting team would need to keep him on their roster for the entire 2010 season. I guess that’s a risk the Rays are willing to take.

You might remember, Rodriguez was the young, right-handed pitcher the Rays acquired in exchange for Jason Hammel prior to the 2009 season. Hammel went on to post good numbers for the Colorado Rockies. Rodriguez had a streaky season with the Montgomery Biscuits.

But, in the end, I think Rodriguez showed enough to at least be optimistic about what he brings to the Rays. He finished the season with an unimpressive 9-11 record. But, he finished the season with a 5-2 stretch, posting a 2.72 ERA during that span with a BAA of .208. And, he won’t turn 22 until December 13, so he’s still very young.

On Thursday, the Rays made the moves they needed to make. They added Desmond Jennings and Jeremy Hellickson to the 40-man roster to keep them away from other teams. Also, they added Alexander Torres to the list of players that they want to build around.

But, Aneury Rodriguez fell on the outside. That may be ok. We’ll have to wait and see if another team is willing to take a chance on him. With a big-league roster spot at stake, I kinda doubt it. Somebody might kick the tires, but the Rays will probably have a chance to get him back.