LOS ANGELES – Austin Peay State University alumnus A.J. Ellis battled through a tumultuous 2014 campaign, but will enjoy Major League Baseball's postseason for a second consecutive season as the starting catcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Dodgers, which won the National League's West Division, will host the NL Central Division Champion St. Louis Cardinals in a best-of-seven game series. That series begins with Ellis sure to backstop his good friend and NL Cy Young favorite Clayton Kershaw in a 5:30 p.m. (CT), Friday contest.

Ellis battled through a pair of injuries in 2014 and ultimately appeared in just 93 games for the Dodgers. Still he has been the team's No. 1 catcher when healthy and was behind the plate for Kershaw's first career no-hitter, June 19, a game that saw him nearly make an incredible catch to end the game…

Ellis enters the postseason with a hit in six of his last 10 games and a .219 batting average, including seven hits, seven RBI and four walks. He enjoyed his season's best outing Sept. 19 against the Chicago Cubs, as he hit two home runs, drove in four, walked, and scored three times. Ellis was the second Dodgers catcher to hit two home runs in a game at Wrigley Field, joining Roy Campanella in 1950. His outing came in support of Kershaw's 20th win.

In 2013, Ellis saw action in 10 postseason contests, recording a hit in nine outings while accumulating a .323 batting average with four doubles, a triple and a home run. That home run was a solo shot that provided the eventual game-winning run in a 6-4 Dodgers victory that forced a Game 6 in the 2013 National League Championship Series against the Cardinals. Ellis went 6-for-17 (.353) in last year's postseason series with the Cardinals.