New York Yankees relief pitcher Adam Ottavino thinks that the current stoppage in baseball due to the coronavirus pandemic is helping the Houston Astros, who were guilty of sign-stealing during the 2017 MLB season.

Because of the coronavirus, the negotiations between the league and the players’ association have dominated the headlines, and people have quickly forgotten about the Astros, who are being let off the hook, according to Ottavino.

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“I don’t think people are going to forget it, but I think it’s helping them because that was the story of spring training up until the virus,” Ottavino said Wednesday on “The No-Sports Report” podcast. “That was all day, every day. It was already to the point where it was exhausting. And, I think that once the season started, they were going to be in for a lot of hatred from fans around the country.”

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Because fans will unlikely attend games this season, they won’t be able to show the Astros the treatment that they deserve from opposing fan bases during road games.

“So, to me, I think this is helping them, especially when they come back, there are definitely not going to be any fans in the stands,” Ottavino said. “So, I think that helps them. Some of (the Astros) have kind of come out of the cave and went back on social media, doing all their stuff, and, you know, good for them, power to them.”