OAKLAND, Calif. -- Oakland Athletics right-hander Sonny Gray is finally feeling healthy again, and he is pitching like he did his first three-plus seasons in the major leagues.

Gray allowed one run and struck out a season-high 11 over seven innings, leading the A's to a 4-1 victory against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum.

Gray (2-1) allowed three hits, walked one and won back-to-back games for the first time since April 16 and 22 last season. He was one strikeout shy of matching his career high set on Sept. 23, 2014, against the Angels. He had double-digit strikeouts for the first time since fanning 10 Rangers on May 3, 2015.

"The main thing you can take away -- and I told you guys last week -- is that I feel healthy," Gray said. "I'm not doing anything different. There's nothing that clicked. There's nothing that mechanically I changed. I just feel healthy.

"I feel like I can do what I want to do with the ball again, and my breaking ball is sharp. That all stems from being mentally and physically feeling healthy."

Gray went 5-11 with a 5.69 ERA last season and spent two stints on the disabled list, the first with a strained right trapezius and the second with a strained right forearm. In 2015, he went 14-7 with a 2.73 ERA and made the American League All-Star team.

"When he's at his best he's getting strikeouts, he's getting bad swings on his breaking balls, good command of his heater, throwing strikes, low pitch count, all of the above," A's manager Bob Melvin said. "Really good. And each time out he gets better."

Jed Lowrie went 4-for-4 with two doubles, two RBIs and a run for the A's. He matched his career high for hits, accomplishing the feat for the seventh time. Khris Davis hit a two-run homer in the first inning, his team-high 14th blast of the season.

Marlins right-hander Edinson Volquez (0-7) gave up three runs on seven hits over six innings with two strikeouts and two walks. Volquez lost his seventh straight decision to open the season, tying Joe Fontenot for the longest such streak in franchise history. The seven-game skid is his longest career in-season losing streak. He has lost a career-high eight straight games, dating to last season.

"When I signed on here, I was hoping to be better than I am right now," Volquez said. "The longer I'm pitching the way I did today, I'm good with it."

Nine of Gray's strikeouts came on sliders -- all but one swinging. He had at least one strikeout in each of his first six innings. Gray struck out all three batters he faced in the third, then the final three he faced in the fourth when Miami had its first two hits and only run of the game.

"I can see it diving in the dirt, but he gets a swing on it 90 percent of the time," A's catcher Josh Phegley said of Gray's slider. "It must look just like a fastball all the way. He knows he's going to get a swing and miss and he doesn't miss in the zone with it."

The A's struck quickly, taking a 2-0 lead in the bottom of first inning when Lowrie hit a two-out double and Davis followed with an opposite-field homer to right.

Miami cut Oakland's lead to 2-1 in the fourth. Dee Gordon led off with a single, Miami's first hit of the game off Gray, and moved to third when Giancarlo Stanton grounded a single to center. Gordon scored on a strike-three, wild pitch to Marcell Ozuna. Stanton moved to third when Phegley, who tried to get Gordon at the plate, threw wildly for an error. But Gray fanned Justin Bour and J.T. Realmuto to strand Stanton.

"He was good," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said of Gray. "He's a guy with good stuff. I thought the first time through we helped him out a lot. I thought we swung out of the strike zone the first time through. A little better the second, but we weren't really able to get anything going."

Oakland answered with a run in the fifth to make it 3-1. Matt Joyce walked with two outs, and Lowrie smoked an RBI double down the right field line.

Oakland added a run in the seventh off reliever Brad Ziegler, a former Athletic. The A's had three hits in the inning, including Lowrie's RBI single.

Santiago Casilla pitched a scoreless ninth for his seventh save.

Marlins rookie right-hander Drew Steckenrider made his major league debut, pitching a scoreless eighth inning.

NOTES: Marlins CF Christian Yelich (right hip flexor) was out of the lineup. Yelich left Tuesday night's game in the bottom of the eighth inning. "He's already moving around 10 times better than he was yesterday," said Michael Hill, Miami's president, baseball operations. "Just going to make sure we get it under control and it doesn't get any worse." ... Oakland RHP Bobby Wahl (strained right shoulder) was placed on the 10-day disabled list, and RHP Zach Neal was recalled from Triple-A Nashville. ... A's 1B Yonder Alonso (right hand/wrist contusion) missed Wednesday's game, one day after being hit by a pitch in the sixth inning Tuesday night. X-rays taken Tuesday night were negative. A's manager Bob Melvin said Alonso was "a little sore" but should return to the lineup Friday against the Yankees after the Oakland's off day Thursday. ... A's LHP Sean Doolittle (strained left shoulder) threw a 25-pitch bullpen session Wednesday and will pitch a simulated game Saturday at extended spring training in Arizona.