Throughout February and March, I spent a disturbingly large percentage of my pre-pandemic hours writing incredibly long division season previews for a season that, as it turned out, would not happen as originally planned. In these previews, I asked (and tried to answer) five big questions about each team in each division and then, at the end, predicted exact records for every one of them. For what it’s worth, every one of these predictions would have been right on the money, had the season happened as scheduled. Trust me.

Anyway, now that we are getting a truncated season, it’s time to dig back into these previews, under the decidedly new and unprecedented circumstances we find ourselves facing. Because there are only 60 games now, rather than 162, we will ask only two questions in these previews, often relating to these decidedly new and unprecedented circumstances we find ourselves facing. The predictions are still coming, though, and they’re still 100 percent guaranteed correct. These will run twice a week until the season begins on July 23.

Today, we look at the American League West.

So far: AL East | NL East | AL Central | NL Central

Angels

1) Will they truly unleash Ohtani?
There is a school of thought that Shohei Ohtani can be a great starting pitcher, and a great hitter, but not both at the same time. The physical demands are just too much for anyone, even him, to withstand. So far, this school of thought, uh, hasn’t been wrong: He has been alternately terrific at both, but never concurrently, and there have been plenty of injuries. But now: He has recovered from surgery, he’s also hitting in the middle of the lineup and there’s a shortened season you can run all sorts of fun experiments with. If we’re ever going to get the Full Shohei Ohtani Experience, this has to be the year, right?

2) What will Trout’s season look like?
The best player in baseball -- one of the best players any of us has ever seen -- has admitted that, because of his wife’s pregnancy, he has not entirely figured out how his 2020 season is going to look. It is impossible for any reasonable person to take the slightest bit of issue with his concerns: A growling, hungry bear at the hospital’s front doors couldn’t have kept me away from the birth of my first child. But where Mike Trout lands on this, and how available he is for the Angels, determines their entire season, just like it does every year. The Angels are an intriguing team with all the talent surrounding Trout. But it requires, you know, Trout.

Astros

1) So is Verlander healthy now?
The Astros' ace and future Hall of Famer had a miserable spring, riddled with nagging injuries, and he finally had groin surgery on March 17. That had an eight-week recovery that was expected to last well into the start of the season, but … well, you know. So is Justin Verlander back? He has looked close to healthy during this most-unusual camp, and he’s even wearing a downright terrific mask.

(Please wear a mask, everyone.)

Fair to say: If Verlander is healthy, uh, the Astros are a lot better than they already are.

2) Will having no fans help them thrive?
The Astros were going to have, well, let’s go with a difficult time every trip they made to opposing parks this season. Fans were gonna let them have it. But hey: That’s not a problem anymore! Never before will silence at a baseball game feel more blessed and comfortable. It is possible, perhaps even likely, that the Astros weren’t going to be bothered by all the boos, and might have even bonded together as a team more as a way to fight against them. But now they don’t have to hear them at all. Unless you are a professional wrestler, it is fair to say that it is better not to be booed than to be booed.

Athletics

1) Is the season too short for them?
The A’s are stacked with young talent and look for all the world to be the sort of team that could go on an exciting run here. But that ignores one thing: The A’s usually start slow and finish strong. There’s no time for a slow start in a 60-game season. “We’re usually a second-half team, but that can’t be the case this year,” manager Bob Melvin has said. You can usually count on the A’s having a late charge that puts them in prime postseason position. (Not that that usually works out either.) But if they start 11-15, which was their record last April, this thing may already be over.

2) Can Semien do that again?
All those people who had “Marcus Semien will finish third in MVP voting” in their AL MVP pools -- you have one of those, right? -- sure cleaned up last year, but none of the rest of us saw that coming. The A’s have emerging talent everywhere, and even guys like Khris Davis who seem primed to recover from a down year. But last year was the first season Semien had ever even had an OPS+ over 100, which is to say, that great year was his first good year. The power was handy, but if he can repeat that .369 OBP, the A’s will be ecstatic. He’s eligible for free agency this coming offseason, and he could end up being one of the biggest names on the market.

Mariners

1) So, who gets traded?
I know this is an ongoing joke with the Mariners because of general manager Jerry Dipoto’s fondness for making deals, but considering this is such a developmental year anyway, you have to think there’s going to be plenty of opportunities to send some guys packing for young players. Kyle Seager is always the first name tossed around, but all told, if Daniel Vogelbach can get off to a start like he did last year, he could be a huge commodity, especially with all of the National League teams that need designated hitters now. This was already going to be a lost year. Having it be a shorter one doesn’t give you any fewer opportunities.

2) How many young players do we see?
This is a major question for any team treating this as a gap year: What rookies make their debut? Justus Sheffield popped up last year and is a rotation mainstay at this point, but the lineup could have an infusion of young regulars, too, from Evan White to Kyle Lewis to Jake Fraley. But of course the player everyone’s waiting on the most is Jarred Kelenic, the No. 11 prospect in baseball and the bounty from that big trade with the Mets from December 2018 that sent Robinson Canó and Edwin Díaz to New York. (A trade that just keeps looking better and better.) There might not be many wins this year, but that’s not what Mariners fans are looking for anyway. They’re looking for a better future. They might just see it.

Rangers

1) How does the new building play?
There have been all sorts of discussions about how the new Rangers stadium might look from the outside, but how does it play on the inside? We might not know for sure until we have fans in the stands, but the last place sure did serve as a bit of a launching pad. Considering the (short-term) investments the Rangers have made in pitching the last year or so, one suspects those pitchers would appreciate a bit of a break in that regard.

2. Can Gallo romp?
Joey Gallo is back on the field after recovering from COVID-19, and if he’s able to recapture his 2019 form (before a broken right hamate bone torpedoed his season), the Rangers have an MVP candidate right in the middle of their lineup. He was slugging .643 in his first 61 games last year. If he does that this year, he’ll win the MVP. And the Rangers very well could surprise.

One man's AL West prediction ...

Astros: 34-26
Athletics: 32-28
Angels: 30-30
Rangers: 28-32
Mariners: 22-38