SAN FRANCISCO -- Throughout August, as Manny Machado endured one of the worst slumps of his career, the Padres insisted their star third baseman would be just fine. His track record spoke for itself, they said.

Sure enough, Manny Machado appears to be hitting like Manny Machado again.

In the Padres’ 4-1 victory over the Giants at Oracle Park on Saturday night, Machado laced an opposite-field triple and scored the winning run in the top of the eighth inning. He also singled and walked, finishing 2-for-4 for the second consecutive night. In a loss on Friday, Machado doubled, homered and scored two runs.

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“We all knew it was just a matter of time,” said Padres manager Andy Green. “... It’s good to see him heat up a little bit. He's obviously the guy in the middle of our order.”

It’s only two games, but Machado’s breakout is an encouraging finish to his worst month since signing a record-setting 10-year deal in February. Through July, Machado was his usual ultra-productive self. In August, he batted .221/.289/.337 with two homers in 27 games.

But those aren’t the numbers that bother Machado. In the second half, the Padres are 18-27, and they’ve slid from playoff contention. After Saturday’s come-from-behind win, Machado offered an assertive message on the importance of the season’s final month.

“We've got to go out there and finish,” Machado said. “Until the last game is done, until the last out is made in the season, we need to keep grinding it out. ... If we can do that and put ourselves in a good situation with good momentum going into next year, we know what we have coming next year.

“It's a matter of playing it out and not taking these last games for granted. Because come next year we're going to be playing for something around this time.”

For the Padres to put themselves in contention next September, they’ve got work left to do. The rotation is the Major Leagues’ youngest, and the lineup has holes. But on Saturday night at least, the idea didn’t seem so far-fetched.

Machado’s go-ahead run was made possible by a gutty effort from Padres starter Joey Lucchesi, who worked six innings of one-run ball. When Machado strode to the plate against Giants left-hander Tony Watson in the eighth, the game was tied at 1.

“Whatever way I can, I’m just trying to get on base,” Machado said.

He was all over Watson’s 1-1 fastball, rocketing it 106 mph into the right-center-field gap. He dove safely into third base and scored two batters later on Josh Naylor’s RBI single. Wil Myers tacked on a two-run shot in the ninth.

Of course, the Padres are still nine games below .500 and fourth in the NL West, 23 1/2 games behind the Dodgers. There’s a huge gap to close. But Machado is convinced that a handful of the right pieces are already in place on one of the sport’s youngest rosters.

“We're learning,” Machado said. “We're learning, and they're adjusting pretty quickly. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. But we have the right mentality of: It's going to take all nine of us.”

Escape act

In the bottom of the sixth, Green emerged for a chat with Lucchesi, who had worked himself into a bit of trouble. At first, Lucchesi thought Green was coming for a quick hook. The Padres skipper quickly assured his starter that wasn’t the case.

“He said, ‘No keep [the ball], you're going to get out of this,’” Lucchesi recalled. “‘We believe in you.’ I was like, ‘All right, hell yeah, Andy. Thanks.’ Then, I was like: ‘I'm for sure going to get this guy.’”

With the bases loaded and one out, Lucchesi got Mauricio Dubon to hit a slow chopper back up the middle. Second baseman Greg Garcia fielded the ball, stepped on the bag, and lobbed to first for an inning-ending double play. Lucchesi skipped off the mound.

“Confidence was definitely raised today,” Lucchesi said. “Getting out of jam like that -- it could either go one way or another.”

Production out of left field

Making his first start since he joined the Padres earlier this week as a waiver claim, Nick Martini singled in his first two at-bats and went 2-for-4.

“Very productive day,” Green said. “He’s going to be very much in the mix moving forward.”

Martini’s presence allowed the Padres to stack four left-handed hitters into the first five places in their starting lineup against Giants righty Logan Webb. Martini was removed as part of a double-switch in the seventh, as Myers entered in left and Craig Stammen took the mound.

That move couldn’t have worked much better. Stammen pitched two scoreless frames, and Myers came to the plate in the ninth with the Padres clinging to a one-run lead. Giants closer Will Smith hung a breaking ball, and Myers crushed it 415 feet to straightaway center, putting San Diego on top, 4-1.

Kirby Yates struck out out all three Giants he faced in the ninth for his Major League-leading 39th save.