Dodgers Challenged by Lengthy Absences for Betts, Yamamoto

But L.A. enjoys an eight-game division lead.

Mookie Betts, after being hit with a pitch Sunday. Mark J. Terrill, AP.

While Dodgers chairman Mark Walter said famously that “pitchers break,” he didn’t balk at signing Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a 12-year, $325 million contract over the winter. But he never said anything about shortstops breaking. And in the space of about 24 hours, Walter has seen his club…