Brooks’ Farewell Leaves a Chill : Dodgers: After being traded to Mets, team leader warns of a possible bad element in L.A.’s new chemistry.

His role as a source of Dodger inspiration and calming influence having ended, Hubie Brooks offered his former teammates a last bit of advice Sunday.

This new collection of all-stars, Brooks said, might be infected with something that could tear them apart.

“The Dodgers have a very, very good team . . . it is 99% solid,” Brooks said Sunday. “But all it takes is 1% to ruin that. And that 1% could be there. I’m not going to say what it is. But it could be there, and it can destroy them.

“In time, everybody could know what that 1% will be. And I’ll just leave it at that.”

In a move that upset him and stunned his teammates, Brooks was traded to the New York Mets Saturday for left-handed pitcher Bob Ojeda and pitching prospect Greg Hansell.

Although it was obvious that the Dodgers needed to trade an outfielder to accommodate the arrival of Brett Butler and Darryl Strawberry, most thought that Kal Daniels would be the player to leave.

Last season, Daniels tied a Los Angeles franchise record for home runs by a left-handed hitter with a team-leading 27 and became the first Dodger to hit three grand slams in one season. He finished second on the team with 94 runs batted in while batting .296, including .354 in September.

Brooks batted .266 with 20 homers and 91 RBIs. But many players were appreciative of Brooks’ veteran work habits and ability to diffuse clubhouse conflicts with his easygoing demeanor.

Sources have confirmed that at least one Dodger veteran asked Fred Claire, Dodger vice president, to trade Daniels instead of Brooks. That veteran, sources said, said Daniels lacked the humble and understated attitude of Brooks.

“I have no comment on that,” Daniels said from his Georgia home. “If a player puts his name behind it, then I will comment on it.”

Said Claire: “I cannot comment on what any player had to say to me. When a player comes to me, I assume he is coming to me in confidence.

“I place a high degree of importance in the attitude of the ballclub, and I think right now we have a good attitude.”

Brooks, who was friendly with almost everyone, emphatically denied naming or in any way indicating the identity of the “1%.” But he lamented that he would not be around to help the Dodgers solve any internal problems and go on to the World Series championship.

After all, he said, that is why as a free agent he signed a three-year contract last winter to play for his hometown team.

“There was nobody on this club who had the extra incentive that I had to put my butt on the line and play hurt every day and do whatever it took to win,” said Brooks, who grew up in Compton and hoped to end his career in the Southland. “Because I am from here, there was nobody who wanted to win more than I did.

“I put my teammates first and did everything I could to win. To be successful and help bring my hometown a championship was my ultimate goal. And now that goal has been taken away.”

He paused. “I don’t want you to think I’m crying over spilled milk--they feel they had to get rid of me, so I just want to be honest with what I feel. Yeah, I was very disappointed in the trade. As disappointed as I could be. Now I guess I’ll just have to win that championship somewhere else.”

Brooks did accomplish his goal of being successful, particularly in pressure situations. Seven of his 20 home runs either tied the score or put the Dodgers in the lead.

In 63 at-bats with runners on third base, he had 51 RBIs with a .349 batting average. In 17 at-bats with the bases loaded, he had 24 RBIs with a .471 average.

Players still talk about his three-run homer in the eighth inning that beat the San Diego Padres on opening day. They also talk about his ability to play with pain.

Brooks missed only nine games despite suffering from a chronic knee injury and a sore wrist that required a cortisone shot.

“I always felt like I had a responsibility to the 3 million people who watched us play,” Brooks said. “I feel players have to respect those people enough to play hard for them and for their teammates.”

As Brooks has been reminded, however, a ballclub is responsible only to what it believes is the best way to win.

“I asked Fred why he traded me, and he told me it was something he had to do,” Brooks said. “And I didn’t like that answer at all. But that is an answer they give everyone in this game.”

Brooks sighed. “I’ll miss it here,” he said. “Right now it’s like, what was the reason for me to come here anyway? For one season? What good did it do that I signed here?”

Rookie pitchers Dave Walsh and Darren Holmes won’t be asking that question.

After the team arrived home from a trip last season, Walsh found himself stranded at LAX without a car. Because Brooks lives near him, he hesitantly asked the 11-year veteran for a ride.

Brooks agreed, then Holmes walked up and asked Walsh for a ride. Brooks agreed to take him, too. Then Holmes asked about rides for his wife and baby, who were arriving 20 minutes later. Brooks agreed again.

“So it ended up this great player going out of his way to drive home two rookies and a wife and baby,” Walsh said. “I’ll never forget his comment. He said, ‘I would love to take you guys. Of course I would. No problem at all.’ ”

Dodger Notes

The Dodgers continue to pursue free agent catcher Gary Carter, whose acquisition would give them four players from the 1986 World Series champion New York Mets. Some in the organization would like to sign Carter now, while others prefer to invite him to spring training on a make-good basis. . . . Juan Samuel, who puzzled the Dodgers last season with his inconsistency, might have called their bluff by returning to the team Saturday upon accepting an offer for a one-year contract with terms subject to arbitration. Sources say one reason he was offered a contract was because of pressure from the Dodgers’ beleaguered player development system, which stood to lose a second-round draft pick as compensation if Samuel was to be set free without being offered a deal. He will probably start at second base, but must compete with Lenny Harris and Mike Sharperson.