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Palatal vowels (i), semivowels (y), and liquids (r) often influence the sound of preceding consonants, a process called palatalization. This is most obvious with dental consonants like t and s, which typically become tch and sh. For example, train often sounds like tchrain. Palatalization is consistent for some English forms, like the shun sound of the ...

You're absolutely right, there is a subtle sh sound. I've just tried it myself and I can detect different positions of my mouth and tongue as I say str words, compared to words beginning simply with s (excluding sugar and sure of course) and other s and consonant clusters. I have no knowledge as to whether this is more marked in different regions, but I ...