Detroit Tigers 2015 spring training - Feb. 25, 2015

Detroit Tigers closer Joe Nathan was tagged for six runs -- four earned -- in his fourth spring appearance Thursday.

(Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)

LAKELAND, Fla. -- Tigers closer Joe Nathan heard a familiar sound Thursday.

Despite it being a spring training game where the final score means very little, Nathan still couldn't avoid being peppered with boos following a disastrous relief appearance in Detroit's 6-5 loss to the Phillies at Joker Marchant Stadium.

From the moment Nathan took the mound in the fifth inning to the moment he walked to the Tigers' dugout after being chased, nothing went right for Nathan, who was lit up for six runs -- four earned -- in just two-thirds of an inning. And the crowd didn't hold back their frustration towards the oft-criticized reliever.

The boos reached their highest peak when Tigers pitching coach Jeff Jones, making his second trip to the mound that inning, lifted Nathan from the game after Jordan Lennerton committed a two-out error that capped the Phillies' six-run outburst.

"I don't care to be honest," Nathan said. "You know, those guys, to be honest with you, aren't even on my mind. Fans aren't in my mind. Only people that really matter to me is my family and the people in this locker room."

Nathan's comments largely echo the comments he made on several occasions last season when asked to respond to being showered with boos from the home crowd.

Nathan has been a constant target of criticism for much of the past year, largely because the 40-year-old closer has struggled mightily with the Tigers since signing a two-year, $20 million with the team in December 2013.

Nathan's popularity appeared to reach an all-time low with Tigers fans when he made a couple ill-advised gestures towards the crowd at Comerica Park, which drew considerable attention. He offered an apology the next day, but based on the crowd's reaction Thursday, it's clear the incident hasn't been entirely forgotten.

"I don't want to make a bigger deal than it is," said Nathan when asked if he considered the crowd's response to be unusual during a spring training. "Fans are going to be the way they are and that's the way it is."

Thursday's reaction was considered a bit of a surprise, however. The crowd at Joker Marchant Park is generally a reserved crowd and it's quite rare to overhear criticism from fans in the stands. Nathan was clearly an exception.

"It doesn't bother me," he said. "It's not a part of my life. They're not a part of my life. Period."

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