'My life is destroyed': Baseballer shares devastation over triple tragedy

A minor leaguer baseball pitcher whose wife, one-year-old son and mother-in-law were murdered this week says his “heart was turned to ash”.

Blake Bivens - a pitcher in the Tampa Bay Rays system - broke his silence on social media on Friday after the horrific triple homicide.

“My life as I knew it is destroyed,” the 24-year-old pitcher wrote on Instagram.

“The pain my family and I feel is unbearable and cannot be put into words.

“I shake and tremble at the thought of our future without them.”

Bivens flew from a road trip back to southern Virginia when he learned of Tuesday's tragedy.

He was accompanied by Montgomery Biscuits manager Morgan Ensberg.

“It was awful,” Ensberg said. “Blake is an incredibly strong man. He's an incredibly strong man, and he went through just a rotation of tearing up, and then he would shake and then he would just stare.

“I didn't let him out of my sight.”

Brother of Bivens’ wife charged

The 18-year-old brother of Bivens' wife has been charged with first-degree murder in the slayings, which have shocked his coaches, teammates and the community where his family lived.

“You don't wish this on any community, any family,” Pittsylvania County Sheriff Mike Taylor said.

“We're a small community. It affects us all.”

Bivens posted a series of photos of his wife Emily, 14-month-old son Cullen and mother-in-law Joan Bernard.

“Emily, my sweetheart, you are the best wife and mother this world has ever seen,” he wrote.

“You made me into the man I am today and you loved me with all of my flaws. You brought our precious baby boy into this world and made our family complete. Your love and kindness changed countless lives, including mine.”

Of Cullen, Bivens wrote “I can't breathe without you her” and “I finally understood what love was when you were born and I would have done anything for you.”

Court documents released Thursday revealed new details in the slayings but did not explain what could have driven 18-year-old Matthew Bernard to allegedly kill his sister, nephew and mother.

In Montgomery, the Biscuits - a Double-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays - painted “BIV” on the ground behind home plate before a game against Pensacola.

They were to hold a moment of silence before the game, with another planned before the Rays' home game Friday against the Cleveland Indians.

“Nobody's thinking about baseball,” Ensberg said.

According to the complaint filed against Bernard, the teenager's rampage began Tuesday morning at a neighbour's house. Bernard punched the neighbour in the arm and then ran away, police said.

The neighbour then heard gunshots at the house next door, police said.

The neighbour drove to the house and found a woman's body in the driveway. Inside, she found the other two bodies.

Officers found two victims with gunshot wounds to the head and rifle shell casings near all three bodies.

A rifle was found in a wooded area behind the house and a sledgehammer with blood was found in the garage, the court documents said.

The criminal complaint did not offer any motive for the killings, and authorities have declined to comment.