CHICAGO -- As they saw their ace and now former teammate walk through the doors of the clubhouse for the last time, White Sox left-handers Derek Holland and Carlos Rodon knew they had to do something. So they had some fun with it.
Holland took to his Instagram account Thursday, filming a tribute to Jose Quintana -- traded earlier that morning in a blockbuster deal to the cross-town Cubs -- in front of Quintana's old locker with "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" by Boyz II Men serving as the background music.
It was a fun message that Quintana received well, Holland said.
"We wanted to have fun with him. Once he left, me and Carlos talked and said we've got to do something," Holland said. "To have something like that, it goes to show how good the chemistry is here. To lose him, though, it's one of those things that kind of takes you away and makes you realize this is a business."
Quintana, who was dealt for top prospects Eloy Jimenez and Dylan Cease (Nos. 8 and 63, respectively, among MLBpipeline.com's Top 100 prospects) along with Matt Rose and Bryant Flete, stopped by Guaranteed Rate Field on Thursday to pack up his locker. It was his scheduled day to play catch, so before he departed, he made sure he played one last game with Holland, Rodon and reliever Tommy Kahnle.
Holland credited Quintana as one of the key presences that made his transition to Chicago a smooth one. The left-hander signed a one-year deal with the club this offseason after previously spending his entire career with Texas.
"This was his house, and to let me come in and be a guest, the way he treated me was perfect," Holland said.
With Quintana gone, the longest-tenured player still on the White Sox roster is first baseman and former All-Star Jose Abreu.
"It has been tough since the moment that Q told us the news," Abreu said. "It was tough to digest."
White Sox infielder Tyler Saladino met Quintana when the two were in Double-A Birmingham in 2012. Even as Quintana's name became synonymous with trade rumors over the last year, Saladino didn't notice a difference in the beloved left-hander.
"There was a little bit of a language barrier [at first]," Saladino said. "Honestly, he was the same guy. From then until now, he's almost the exact same guy."
Worth noting
• The White Sox activated right-hander Miguel Gonzalez and Saladino from the 10-day DL before their game against the Mariners on Friday at Guaranteed Rate Field. Gonzalez hasn't pitched since June 14 with A/C joint inflammation in his right shoulder and had been rehabbing with Double-A Birmingham. Saladino hasn't played since May 26 while dealing with back spasms and had been rehabbing with Triple-A Charlotte. Saladino was in the lineup Friday, and he went 1-for-3 with an RBI double in Chicago's 4-2 loss.
"It's very frustrating because you don't come here to get hurt," Saladino said of the nagging back spasms. "It's part of the game, but obviously when something like that happens it brings you down a little. But I just kept after it and didn't really know how long it may or may not take, so stick with it, and I'll be back."
Gonzalez and Saladino take the roster spots of Quintana and Willy Garcia, who was optioned to Triple-A over the All-Star break.
• White Sox right-hander Dylan Covey, who hasn't pitched since May 23 due to a left oblique strain, was back in Chicago being reevaluated Friday, general manager Rick Hahn said. Covey said he will be throwing off a mound for the first time since the injury on Saturday at Guaranteed Rate Field.