The wife and child of Tampa Bay Rays prospect Blake Bivens were shot and killed in a triple homicide on Tuesday, and a suspect is in custody, according to reports.
19-year-old Matthew Bernard is in custody and suspected of killing his mother, sister, sister’s child and a dog at the Pittsylvania County, Virginia home of his sister.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported the news on Tuesday and says Bernard is being charged with first-degree murder.
Just an awful tragedy: The wife and child of Blake Bivens, a Double-A pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, were among three people killed in rural Virginia on Tuesday, sources tell ESPN. Police have charged Bivens' wife's brother with first-degree homicide.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 28, 2019
Police were alerted to the matter when a neighbor called 911 around 8 a.m., believing someone had been shot. A police officer responding to the call found a woman dead in the driveway of the home and the two other victims inside the home.
Here is a report from 10 News WSLW:
A neighbor told 10 News the suspect looked nervous and frightened. She said she saw the suspect run out from behind her house toward Keeling Baptist Church. She said he was naked and deputies tried pepper-spraying him, but, she said, he was unfazed. She said she saw him choke someone at the church. Deputies then hit him with batons and arrested him, she said.
Bernard was running around the town naked before being apprehended.
Bivens, 24, was a fourth-round pick by the Rays in 2014 out of high school in Danville, Virginia. He is a pitcher for the Double-A Motgomery Biscuits and has gone 4-0 with a 3.95 ERA this year.
The Biscuits announced that they had cancelled that day’s scheduled games.
Tonight's doubleheader has been cancelled. pic.twitter.com/QjhbQ0unPP
— Montgomery Biscuits (@BiscuitBaseball) August 27, 2019
The Rays issued a statement about the tragedy.
We're with you, Blake. pic.twitter.com/gJqdUCIf7p
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) August 28, 2019
Bivens and wife Emily were married in January 2016. They had a son, Cullen, in June 2018.
