Field Level Media - Professional sports content solutions | FLM

Tampa Bay Rays pitching prospect Blake Bivens’ wife, child and mother-in-law were killed Tuesday in southern Virginia, according to multiple reports.

Bivens’ 18-year-old brother-in-law, Matthew Thomas Bernard, was arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder after a brief manhunt near the Virginia-North Carolina border.

Pittsylvania County investigators said police were dispatched to a home in Keeling, Va., around 8 a.m. Tuesday due to a report of shots being fired. They discovered a woman dead in the driveway and two more bodies inside the home.

“This is a shock to our community,” Sheriff Mike Taylor told the Danville Register & Bee. “It’s just a reminder of how fragile life is.”

Authorities did not provide names of the victims or speculate on a motive for the killings. Bernard, naked at the time of his arrest, led police on a short chase on foot.

Rays CEO and managing owner Lou DiBella released a statement Tuesday night regarding Bivens, a 24-year-old right-hander with the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits.

“Earlier today, we learned that one of our players … suffered a terrible family tragedy in southern Virginia. Our hearts are broken for Blake. We are grieving with him and will support him any way we can,” the statement read.

The Biscuits canceled a doubleheader Tuesday in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Bivens, a fourth-round draft pick in 2014, is 4-0 with a 3.95 ERA in 27 games (three starts) this season.

–Field Level Media