Yeah tankers are a pain at the start of the game, but you can fast track a few techs that increase tanker capacity, etc. Unfortunately, there’s no mods I’m aware of that fix this.
The other micro pain is Trade and having to set up your trade routes, populate with freighters and then have to do it all over again when you research Mega Freighters. Bastard Sword of the Stars fixes that big time. No mega freighters, 1 freighter per trade route, fewer trade routes, etc.