Dodgers call up Dana Eveland to start Thursday against Pirates

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Perseverance has paid off for left-hander Dana Eveland.

At least, if you consider a late-season start a payoff.

Eveland has spent most of the last six seasons shuttling between the major and minor leagues, and now he’s shuttling again.

Eveland will start for the Dodgers on Thursday afternoon in their makeup game in Pittsburgh.

Eveland, 27, has appeared in 95 games with five clubs in the majors over the last six seasons. Last year he was with Toronto and Pittsburgh.

Signed as a free agent by the Dodgers in December, he has spent this season at triple-A Albuquerque, where he was the Isotopes’ most effective starter (12-8, 4.38 ERA, 1.38 WHIP).

For now, the addition of Eveland means the Dodgers will use a six-man rotation. It’s only scheduled to happen once, with rookie Nathan Eovaldi likely starting his final game of the season Saturday in Atlanta.

The Dodgers are trying to be cautious with the young right-hander’s arm. In five starts for the Dodgers, he has thrown 26 innings. At double-A Chattanooga, he threw 103 innings. The overall total of 129 innings easily exceeds his previous career high of 98-2/3 innings, set last year.

Rosters can be expanded Thursday, but for Manager Don Mattingly said only one other player is expected to join them in Pittsburgh. Since the player had yet to be told, he would not reveal the name, but said it was an infielder who has been up previously this season, which pretty much points to Ivan De Jesus Jr.

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-- Steve Dilbeck