PHILADELPHIA – Already in the middle of a three-city road trip as part of a 20-game stretch with no days off, the Cincinnati Reds are struggling with six games left to play.

Hours after losing a 19-inning game early Thursday morning to a hitter-turned-pitcher, the Reds fell 10-4 in an afternoon game to the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park, dropping to 1-6 on a trip that concludes with three games in Atlanta.

“It’s tough. We’ve kind of been exhausting every option,” right fielder Jay Bruce said. “We’ll get the hit and can’t hold the lead. Or we’ll hold the lead and can’t get the hit. It’s just back and forth. It’s going to pass, though.”

Cliff Lee (4-4) drove in three runs with a bases-loaded double and a single, and worked eight effective innings for the Phillies.

Cincinnati may have also lost a starter pitcher in Homer Bailey, who left Thursday’s game with right shoulder spasms suffered during an at-bat in the top of the fourth inning.

He allowed four runs and five hits and a walk in four innings.

“He had some discomfort swinging the bat reaching for a ball,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. “His velocity was down a little after that. We’ll get him checked, but I don’t think it’s serious.”

The teams were playing with little rest after Wednesday’s 19-inning marathon ended at 1:19 a.m., after 6 hours, 11 minutes and 600 total pitches.

Raul Ibanez hit a three-run homer on Thursday for the Phillies, who took three of four from the Reds. Every Phillie had at least one hit, including Chase Utley, who is 2 for 14 since returning from the disabled list earlier this week.

The Phillies took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Ryan Howard doubled in Michael Martinez with two outs.

Howard was intentionally walked in the fourth inning with two outs and a runner on second, but Ibanez hit an 0-2 pitch for a home run. Ibanez is batting .361 (30 for 83) since snapping an 0-for-35 skid.

The Reds cut it to 4-2 in the fourth inning on Paul Janish’s two-run single that scored Miguel Cairo and Jay Bruce.

Bruce tied the game with a two-run homer to right in the sixth inning. The shot was his National League-leading 14th of the season. Bruce has batted .486 with six homers and 14 RBIs during an eight-game hitting streak.

After Bailey left, Baker turned to rookie Daryl Thompson (0-1), who had been recalled from Double-A, in a tie game. After pitching around two walks in the fifth, the Phillies loaded the bases with no outs in the sixth.

Lee hit a first-pitch double over the head of center fielder Drew Stubbs. It bounced over the fence for a ground-rule double.

“I wanted it down and away, but left it right over the plate,” Thompson said. “He made me pay for it. I had a lot of adrenaline, maybe too much.”

An inning later, Lee’s single up the middle scored John Mayberry Jr. He became the first Phillies pitcher to drive in three runs since Cory Lidle, on Sept. 4, 2004, against the Mets.

“This game is crazy,” Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard said. “You never know what you’re going to see. You’re going to have those hard and crazy games, and you’re going to get things that you never encountered.”

The Reds are encountering a bad stretch.

“When it rains, it pours,” Baker said. “Right now, it’s pouring.”

Notes: Phillies right-hander Jose Contreras, activated from the 15-day disabled list before the game, worked a scoreless ninth inning. … OF Shane Victorino (right hamstring) is scheduled to begin a rehabilitation assignment on Saturday with Class A Lakewood. He is also scheduled to play there Sunday. … Reds utility player Miguel Cairo batted cleanup for the first time this season. … RHP David Herndon was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley to make room for Contreras. The Reds placed Matt Maloney on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Tuesday, with a strained left oblique muscle.

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Astros-Reds game ppd. (rain); to be played Thur.

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The Cincinnati Reds and veteran shortstop Edgar Renteria have agreed to a one-year contract, according to multiple media reports.

The team is expected to announce the deal Thursday afternoon. ESPN.com says the contract could be worth up to $3 million with an incentive package.

The Cincinnati Reds and shortstop Edgar Renteria have agreed to a one-year contract.

Renteria, a five-time All-Star, was the 2010 World Series MVP as a member of the Giants. He hit .276 with three home runs in 72 games with San Francisco.

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The Cincinnati Reds will announce the signing of shortstop Edgar Renteria to a one-year contract Thursday afternoon, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

The deal could be worth as much as $3 million with an incentive package.

Renteria was the 2010 World Series MVP for the San Francisco Giants.

Bruce Levine covers baseball for ESPNChicago.com and ESPN 1000.

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