Jose Fernandez Death: Maria Arias, Girlfriend Of Deceased MLB Player, Gives Birth To Daughter

The girlfriend of the deceased Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez gave birth to daughter Penelope on Friday, Feb. 24, according to Sun Sentinel.

Maria Arias delivered the girl five months after Fernandez (24) was killed along with two others in a boating accident off the shores of Miami Beach. According to a family attorney, the mother of Fernandez, Maritza Gomez Fernandez, wants the newborn to be the sole beneficiary to his estate, which is worth an estimated $2 million to $3 million.

Unfortunately, the families of the two other passengers killed in the fatal crash filed death lawsuits against Fernandez's estate, seeking $2 million each.

"This has been great for everyone," Ralph Fernandez, a family friend, told ESPN by phone. "This is the only bit of good news in the past five months since the tragedy." He also confirmed the birth of the baby girl went "smoothly and that both mother and baby are healthy."

After the fatal accident, a good friend of Eddy Rivero - one of the two passengers who died that day- told People en Español that the Major League Baseball player would have argued with his girlfriend before he died. "Eddy told me that [Fernandez] and his girlfriend were having some sort of discussion, but he wasn’t sure the extent of it," Will Bernal told the magazine. "[Eddy did not know] if it was a combination of things piling up all at the same time," he continued.

After the birth news, the Marlins third baseman Martin Prado said on his spring training debut that he was "happy to see a piece of Jose that is going to grow. She’s going to be so blessed." Prado also told the baby "is going to bring a lot of peace and happiness to both families and friends, and even us."

Meanwhile, the family attorney is preparing Fernandez's family for the legal battle.