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'Can't wait to see you again:' Tampa Bay Rays prospect Blake Bivens wishes murdered wife happy birthday

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TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa Bay Rays pitching prospect Blake Bivens wished his late wife a happy birthday on Thursday.

Bivens' wife Emily would have turned 25.

"Happy 25th Birthday in heaven, baby! I thank God everyday for letting me have you for a short time. Your love and kindness has impacted so many people. I miss you so much. Give our little pooh bear a kiss for me. I love you both so much and can’t wait to see you again," Bivens said on Instagram.

Emily, the couple's 1-year-old son Cullen and Emily's mother Joan were killed in Virginia in August.

Emily's brother Matthew Bernard, 18, was arrested by police for the triple murder. He's was arraigned in September on three counts of first-degree murder and weapons-related charges.

View this post on Instagram

It’s been a month since both of you went home to Paradise to be with Jesus. I spend most of my time imagining what both of you are seeing and experiencing. As my tears fall, I remind myself of what the apostle Paul said in first Thessalonians 4:13-14 NIV “Brothers and sisters we do not want you to be on uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him”. For me this is not the end but only a brief interruption. One day soon we will have a magnificent reunion and all of us will be with the Lord forever. Until then I will press on to the ultimate goal of spending eternity in Heaven. My family and I would like to thank everyone across this country who has prayed for us and sent words of encouragement our way. I also want to thank the baseball community; The love and compassion we have felt has been unbelievable. It truly feels like we are one big family. Thank you @ourbaseballlife for everything you have done to support us during this time. I also want to thank the @raysbaseball for their continuous support through all this.

A post shared by Blake Bivens (@blakebbins) on

Bivens has only posted to his Instagram a handful of times since the murders. In September he wrote about his loss and thanked the Rays for their support.

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