WASHINGTON – Ricky Nolasco, making his final appearance before the 2016 season opens Monday, gave up his first home run of the spring Saturday — and his second, third and fourth, too.

But the Twins pounded Washington's fifth starter, Joe Ross, even worse, and the teams closed the exhibition season with an 8-8 stalemate at Nationals Park.

Nolasco, told earlier in the week that he will be the Twins' fifth starter, gave up six hits over four innings, but four of them cleared the outfield walls, including back-to-back first-pitch blasts by Ryan Zimmerman and Daniel Murphy in the first inning. Michael Taylor and Danny Esposito also homered off Nolasco, who had not given up a home run in any of his four previous starts against major leaguers this spring.

"Good to get them out of the way now. I fell behind some guys and challenged them, and a few of them didn't come back," said Nolasco, who struck out six. "Obviously a few I wish I could have back, but I felt decent. I got my work in and I'm healthy, that's what's important."

Brian Dozier hit the second pitch of the game from Ross into the Twins bullpen, his fourth home run of the season, and Joe Mauer smacked one nearly to the same spot two innings later, scoring Byron Buxton and Dozier ahead of him. The Twins added three more off Ross, scheduled to bring up the rear in the Nationals' rotation, in the fifth inning, with Eddie Rosario whistling a bases-clearing double into the right-field corner for three RBI.

The Twins finish the spring with a 19-11-2 record, narrowly failing to become the fourth team in franchise history to win 20 preseason games.

PHIL MILLER