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After all of that ruckus the Cardinals created in the first two games of this season’s first archrivalry series, by the end the Cubs’ four-day visit, the offense had gone silent, the standings had stagnated and really only one statement was made.

To be continued.

The Cardinals began the second half of the season much like they spent most of the first 81 games of the regular season: loitering in contention but not yet challenging for the lead. Their scoreless streak reached 22 innings by the time the ninth inning ended in a 3-0 loss to the Cubs on Thursday afternoon at Busch Stadium. With home runs galore and wins in the first two games, the Cardinals had a chance to take the series and carve into the first-place Cubs’ lead in the National League Central. The Cubs shut out the Cardinals in consecutive games to split the series, ultimately leaving ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ in the exact same spot they arrived, up 4 1/2 games.

“I think we’re even,� Cardinals first baseman and former Cubs catcher Willson Contreras said. “We won the first two games. The second game was a battle. The last two games didn’t go the way we wanted them to. They played better than us the last two games. They deserve to win.�

The Cardinals did lot let the Cubs leave town without a fight — nearly.

It was more of a spat.

Held to one hit during his five scoreless innings by Cubs lefty Shoto Imanaga, the Cardinals mustered a late threat in the ninth inning that ignited with a furious Contreras. Alec Burleson roped a double off Cubs closer Daniel Palencia to bring Contreras up. Palencia misfired on a 100.5 mph fastball that zipped up and in on Contreras. Conscious of his two fractures last season and many bruises on pitches already this season, Contreras was livid after the fastball skimmed his knuckles.

He shouted a phrase that included two words: “Throw strikes.�

Palencia heeded the advice and struck out the next three Cardinals he faced to secure his eighth save. When he celebrated the final strikeout and the victory, Palencia turned toward Contreras at first. Contreras took issue. He yelled at the right-hander. A coach got between him and the pitcher. Both dugouts emptied. But not much happened other than an interruption of the Cubs’ handshake line as they congratulated themselves on holding serve in the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ heat.

“I know I reacted the way I reacted — nobody wants a fastball at your face,� Contreras said later in the Cardinals- clubhouse. “I know he’s not trying to. I just said, ‘Throw strikes.’ My reaction was bad. I take that back. I apologize to the Chicago Cubs for the way I reacted. I am not trying to get another broken bone.

“I’m not trying to fight them. I’m not trying to fight anybody.�

There wasn’t much verve to the Thursday’s series finale until the late innings — at least not for the Cardinals. That was predictable. They were sledding against the probabilities.

The sweltering temperatures played a part in the power-packed start, and the actual baseballs behaved all week like a force multiplier for both teams. (Andre Pallante said the way the ball soared did not change his approach as a ground-ball pitcher. One of his teammates said he had to adjust after watching the ball fly all week.) The Cardinals hit four home runs to win Monday’s series opener, and all three came from left-handed batters after a right-handed batter reached base. They hit seven homers total, and all but one came from a left-handed hitter.

Sense a trend?

The final two games of the series were against the Cubs’ top two left-handed starters, Matthew Boyd and Imanaga (4-2). That gave the Cubs the edge against the Cardinals’ top producers in the series, and then the Cardinals further complicated their lineup with averages. Lars Nootbaar, who hit two homers in the first two games, missed the final two games with soreness within his left ribcage. Ivan Herrera, a key right-handed bat for the Cardinals to counterpunch against lefty starters, missed the entire series due to a slightly torn hamstring.

The Cardinals plucked a right-handed hitter, Garrett Hampson, off waivers to add during the series, and he and his .157 average started twice.

He also got the Cardinals’ second hit of the day Thursday.

It came in the eighth inning.

“We weren’t able to string together a whole lot offensively,� manager Oliver Marmol said. “Good, competitive game. They beat us. ... We played three really good games, and (Wednesday’s 8-0 loss) I wouldn’t count that as a good one. As far as our style of play and how we matched up against those guys, I’m pretty pleased. We went into it wanting to take all four. We weren’t able to do that, obviously. I still like the way we competed this series. I really do.�

The Cardinals’ 82nd game of the season captured a lot about who they’ve been in the first half of the schedule — minus all the runs, however.

In the first half, the Cardinals have a top-seven offense when measured by runs scored, but they get there despite a bottom half team when it comes to slugging percentage and home runs. They bombard teams with hits. Only the Dodgers and Cubs have more than the Cardinals’ 705 hits in the National League. The persisting pressure that puts on opponents contributes to their 20 come-from-behind wins, the 20th of which came Tuesday against the Cubs. The Cardinals are at their best when pairing hits in bulk with defense in gold, and when they did not get many hits Thursday, no amount of defense was going to rescue them. Even the best glove cannot steal a run to win 0 to minus-1.

And sometimes the grounders get through.

Pallante allowed two runs on seven hits through five workable innings. Michael Busch hit a full-count fastball with two outs in the second to give the Cubs a 1-0 lead and do what no Busch or Bush had ever done before at any of the three Busch stadiums. He’s the first player who shares the name with the Cardinals’ three ballparks to hit a home run at one, according to research by the team’s media relations staff.

Busch scored the first two runs of the game, and the second came in a classic pitch-to-contact inning for Pallante (5-4). Ah, the whims of balls in play. Busch lined a single to center, but the Cubs loaded the bases when two ground balls found seams. When No. 9 hitter Matt Shaw sizzled a liner toward left that would have cleared the bases it found a glove — Nolan Arenado’s. Given the gift of a second out, Pallante then walked leadoff hitter Ian Happ to force home a run.

The Cubs swiped their third run with a classic ploy the Cardinals like to pull with runners at the corner. The runner at first, Dansby Swanson, broke from first to draw the throw — and then the runner at third, Pete Crow-Armstrong, was off for home. Crow-Armstrong, one of the swiftest players in the league, didn’t need Swanson to draw much attention before scoring.

An inning earlier, Crow-Armstrong made a sliding catch in center at the warning track to rob Nolan Gorman of a runs-scoring double and the Cardinals of a different looking scoreboard.

There was a lot of sound at the start of the series and some fury toward the end, but the rivals played to a draw and teams on the field at the end Thursday was symbolic after the split.

Nothing’s settled

“It’s going to be a battle,� Nootbaar said. “Thankfully, we get to see them in a week. Duke it out more.�