SAN DIEGO -- The Padres split four games against the National League East-leading Mets this weekend -- a wholly respectable outcome, and yet, considering the efforts of their starting pitchers, they came out of it feeling like it could've (perhaps should've) been more.

San Diego dropped Sunday's finale at Petco Park, 6-2, despite a solid showing from right-hander Chris Paddack, who allowed three runs over six innings while not getting much help from his defense behind him. Of late, manager Jayce Tingler has begun to give his starters some leash, and they’ve responded. This weekend, they combined to post a 3.09 ERA.

• Box score

But the San Diego offense has done little to back its rotation, managing just 18 runs in the last eight games combined.

“It’s frustrating,” said Tingler. “Frustrating because right now, offensively, we’re not scoring enough runs. We’re probably more middle-of-the-pack when it comes to crossing the dish. We think we’re a top five offense. Right now, we’re just not getting the runs across.”

Sure, offense is down across the sport this season. But the Padres’ regression is more jarring than that. A year ago, their .798 OPS ranked fourth in the Majors. This year, their .693 mark ranks 21st in that category.

So what gives? And how do they fix it?

1. More production around Tatis
Fernando Tatis Jr. can't do it all.

Well, some days he can. But the Padres have a number of hitters with extensive track records who are struggling around him.

First and foremost is Manny Machado, who missed his eighth game of the season on Sunday. Machado is hitting just .232/.326/.402 this year, well below his career averages. He’s dealt with a nagging left shoulder injury, though Tingler insisted that Machado’s absence from the lineup on Sunday was merely a planned day off. (Then, Machado was ejected from the dugout, along with Tingler, for arguing a checked swing call in the second inning.)

Behind Tatis in the lineup, Eric Hosmer and Wil Myers -- who both started strong -- haven't offered much in the way of protection lately. Since Tatis was activated from the injured list 2 1/2 weeks ago, Hosmer is hitting .209, and Myers .241.

2. Shake up the batting order
With the Padres' offense on its best roll of the season, Tingler inserted Tatis into the cleanup spot when he returned. Everything else was working. Why mess with it?

Well, it's no longer working. The Padres offense has stalled, and it's not Tatis' fault. He's the reigning NL Player of the Month and is still raking in June.

“We’ve got to find ways to score runs,” Tingler said when asked about changing his lineup construction. “We’ve got to be open-minded to any and everything right now.”

One quick fix would be moving Tatis up and dropping the slumping Jurickson Profar, who has batted ahead of Tatis in three of the past four games. There’s really no reason Profar should be coming to the plate more often than Tatis, as was the case on Sunday.

Don’t be surprised if the Padres move Tatis back into the 1 or 2 spot, pairing him with Tommy Pham, who -- after a slow start -- has been the Padres’ second-best hitter over the past month, and an on-base weapon.

3. Get healthy
“The teams we’re playing also have guys down as well,” Tingler said, refusing to take the bait on this excuse. “We’ve still got to tow it up and go man to man. We’ve got to win our battles.”

And while it’s true that every team deals with injuries, it’s tough to overstate the impact of Trent Grisham and Austin Nola on this offense. Grisham’s presence would be a huge jolt for the top of the lineup, alongside the suddenly hot Pham. Profar, meanwhile, could return to the utility/bench role that the Padres had envisioned.

Nola’s presence gives the Padres a subtler boost. But when healthy, he’s an excellent hitting catcher, and it’s probably no coincidence that Victor Caratini’s best stretch at the plate came when he was sharing time with Nola, given regular rest days.

Then there’s Machado, who simply hasn’t been himself. Replace Profar, Ha-Seong Kim and Webster Rivas in Sunday’s lineup with Grisham, Nola and a thriving Machado, and this offense looks different.

4. Time to deal for one more bat?
If only there were a time of year where the contending teams could look at their rosters and try to make them better. Oh right, the Trade Deadline.

And if only the Padres had a general manager willing to wheel and deal in an effort to make his team better. Oh right, A.J. Preller.

If the San Diego front office was unsure about the need to add a bat before the July 30 Deadline, the past eight days might have tipped the scales. A smaller move for a bench piece -- someone to challenge for playing time in the outfield and pinch-hit ABs -- might be prudent.

But there will be big-name corner-outfield bats available, too. The prices will be steep. But the Padres fancy themselves World Series contenders, and Preller’s recent trade history tells us he’s willing to pay a high price for the right piece.