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San Francisco Chronicle
2 days ago
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
A mix of youth and chemistry has Red Sox rolling into All-Star break on 10-game winning streak
BOSTON (AP) — Many of the Boston Red Sox players started wearing T-shirts during batting practice and in the clubhouse the past week with a quote from teammate Romy Gonzalez written across the front. It says: 'Tremendously locked in.' They certainly look that way heading into the All-Star break. On Sunday, Ceddanne Rafaela hit a two-run homer and the Red Sox (53-45) posted their 10th straight victory with a 4-1, series-sweeping win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park. 'There's two things: We're young and we're athletic and that doesn't slump to be honest with you,' said manager Alex Cora, who reminded some of his younger players to lead with energy in late May. 'I talked to some of the kids in Atlanta and their job is to, of course, play as hard as you can,' he said. 'I told them: 'There's no excuse for you guys not bringing the energy every single day. It starts in the clubhouse with the music.'' The 24-year-old Rafaela has joined three rookies: infielder Marcelo Mayer, outfielder Roman Anthony and catcher Carlos Narváez to give the Red Sox a jolt of successful youth leading them into the break. Following a series-opening loss in New York on June 6, the Red Sox dropped to 10 1/2 games behind the AL East-leading Yankees. Now, just over a month later, they're a game behind them for second place, trailing the division-leading Toronto Blue Jays. 'It's been fun the last 10 days,' said Rafaela, who is hitting .421 with five homers and 15 RBIs during a career-best 10-game hitting streak. 'Yes, we've been winning and it's always good to win,' he said. 'I think it's the most fun I've (ever) had.' Veteran Trevor Story, who had struggled during three-injury plagued seasons with the Red Sox after signing a six-year, $140-million contract as a free agent in March 2022, has picked it up by playing solid defense at short with timely hitting. 'We're playing well,' Cora said. 'Trevor and Rafaela have been amazing.' The streak comes less than a month after Boston shipped Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants. Story sees the club believing it has finally found its stride. 'I think we have more of an identity now,' he said. 'We're starting to believe that I think we can win in different ways. Like we've shown in this 10-gamer, we can slug, or we can win one-run games, we can steal bases. I think playing good defense is a good part of that. I think it all starts with the pitching, which has been lights out.' 'Yeah, energy, chemistry,' Cora said. 'Winning's better that losing. We're excited about going to the ballpark.' ___
Fox Sports
2 days ago
- Sport
- Fox Sports
A mix of youth and chemistry has Red Sox rolling into All-Star break on 10-game winning streak
Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Many of the Boston Red Sox players started wearing T-shirts during batting practice and in the clubhouse the past week with a quote from teammate Romy Gonzalez written across the front. It says: 'Tremendously locked in.' They certainly look that way heading into the All-Star break. On Sunday, Ceddanne Rafaela hit a two-run homer and the Red Sox (53-45) posted their 10th straight victory with a 4-1, series-sweeping win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park. 'There's two things: We're young and we're athletic and that doesn't slump to be honest with you,' said manager Alex Cora, who reminded some of his younger players to lead with energy in late May. 'I talked to some of the kids in Atlanta and their job is to, of course, play as hard as you can,' he said. 'I told them: 'There's no excuse for you guys not bringing the energy every single day. It starts in the clubhouse with the music.'' The 24-year-old Rafaela has joined three rookies: infielder Marcelo Mayer, outfielder Roman Anthony and catcher Carlos Narvaez to give the Red Sox a jolt of successful youth leading them into the break. Following a series-opening loss in New York on June 6, the Red Sox dropped to 10 1/2 games behind the AL East-leading Yankees. Now, just over a month later, they're a game behind them for second place, trailing the division-leading Toronto Blue Jays. 'It's been fun the last 10 days,' said Rafaela, who is hitting .421 with five homers and 15 RBIs during a career-best 10-game hitting streak. 'Yes, we've been winning and it's always good to win,' he said. 'I think it's the most fun I've (ever) had.' Veteran Trevor Story, who had struggled during three-injury plagued seasons with the Red Sox after signing a six-year, $140-million contract as a free agent in March 2022, has picked it up by playing solid defense at short with timely hitting. 'We're playing well,' Cora said. 'Trevor and Rafaela have been amazing.' The streak comes less than a month after Boston shipped Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants. Story sees the club believing it has finally found its stride. 'I think we have more of an identity now,' he said. 'We're starting to believe that I think we can win in different ways. Like we've shown in this 10-gamer, we can slug, or we can win one-run games, we can steal bases. I think playing good defense is a good part of that. I think it all starts with the pitching, which has been lights out.' The pitching has been led by All-Star Garrett Crochet, who posted his first complete game, shutting out the Rays on Saturday. 'Yeah, energy, chemistry,' Cora said. 'Winning's better that losing. We're excited about going to the ballpark.' ___ AP MLB: recommended Item 1 of 3
Winnipeg Free Press
2 days ago
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
A mix of youth and chemistry has Red Sox rolling into All-Star break on 10-game winning streak
BOSTON (AP) — Many of the Boston Red Sox players started wearing T-shirts during batting practice and in the clubhouse the past week with a quote from teammate Romy Gonzalez written across the front. It says: 'Tremendously locked in.' They certainly look that way heading into the All-Star break. On Sunday, Ceddanne Rafaela hit a two-run homer and the Red Sox (53-45) posted their 10th straight victory with a 4-1, series-sweeping win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park. 'There's two things: We're young and we're athletic and that doesn't slump to be honest with you,' said manager Alex Cora, who reminded some of his younger players to lead with energy in late May. 'I talked to some of the kids in Atlanta and their job is to, of course, play as hard as you can,' he said. 'I told them: 'There's no excuse for you guys not bringing the energy every single day. It starts in the clubhouse with the music.'' The 24-year-old Rafaela has joined three rookies: infielder Marcelo Mayer, outfielder Roman Anthony and catcher Carlos Narváez to give the Red Sox a jolt of successful youth leading them into the break. Following a series-opening loss in New York on June 6, the Red Sox dropped to 10 1/2 games behind the AL East-leading Yankees. Now, just over a month later, they're a game behind them for second place, trailing the division-leading Toronto Blue Jays. 'It's been fun the last 10 days,' said Rafaela, who is hitting .421 with five homers and 15 RBIs during a career-best 10-game hitting streak. 'Yes, we've been winning and it's always good to win,' he said. 'I think it's the most fun I've (ever) had.' Veteran Trevor Story, who had struggled during three-injury plagued seasons with the Red Sox after signing a six-year, $140-million contract as a free agent in March 2022, has picked it up by playing solid defense at short with timely hitting. 'We're playing well,' Cora said. 'Trevor and Rafaela have been amazing.' The streak comes less than a month after Boston shipped Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants. Story sees the club believing it has finally found its stride. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. 'I think we have more of an identity now,' he said. 'We're starting to believe that I think we can win in different ways. Like we've shown in this 10-gamer, we can slug, or we can win one-run games, we can steal bases. I think playing good defense is a good part of that. I think it all starts with the pitching, which has been lights out.' The pitching has been led by All-Star Garrett Crochet, who posted his first complete game, shutting out the Rays on Saturday. 'Yeah, energy, chemistry,' Cora said. 'Winning's better that losing. We're excited about going to the ballpark.' ___ AP MLB:
Canada Standard
09-07-2025
- Business
- Canada Standard
FedEx, UPS step up as Canada Post loses market share in strikes
OTTAWA, Canada: With Canada Post struggling to maintain operations amid labour unrest, rivals like FedEx and UPS are stepping in to fill the gap. UPS, FedEx, and other private parcel carriers are busy cornering a bigger share of the nearly US$17 billion Canadian delivery market, while government-owned Canada Post copes with labor turmoil. Canada Post, the country's primary postal service, has been plagued by labor disruptions since last year, including during the peak holiday season as workers went on strike over pay. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), which represents Canada Post delivery personnel, initiated a nationwide overtime ban in May after contract negotiations failed. The repeated disruptions have prompted small businesses to turn to rivals and private carriers for timely deliveries, even if they are more expensive. "For retailers who can't afford to roll the dice on labor peace, their T-shirts and iPhone cases hop over to brown or purple vans (UPS/FedEx) at the first whiff of trouble," said Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at wealth management company Running Point Capital. Parcel giant FedEx told Reuters it expects "the circumstances at Canada Post may trigger an increase in demand for FedEx services." To handle the additional demand, the company may offer special rates, add delivery vehicles, rework routes, reallocate resources, and open temporary sorting centers. UPS declined to divulge its plans to boost capacity. Calgary-based Lisa Graham, who runs a small e-commerce business called YYC Beeswax, told Reuters her business relied heavily on Canada Post's affordable small-package rates for domestic shipments. However, after the business suffered some losses during last year's holiday season strikes, Graham turned to UPS and FedEx to keep deliveries running, and enlisted local courier services to supply domestic customers, who make up 70 percent of her sales. "Anything that's going to take over two days, we are spending extra to ship with them (private courier services)." Last year's strikes cost small and medium-sized businesses over $1 billion in lost sales, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business said. Michael Cox, who imports Irish sweaters, textiles, jewelry, and other goods from the UK to his Ottawa-based shop, said he had to halt business during last year's strikes, as Canada Post was its sole logistics provider, causing significant losses. The Canadian courier, express, and parcel market is valued at $16.74 billion and could hit $21.55 billion by 2030, according to Mordor Intelligence. "The impact of the ongoing uncertainty, including last year's strikes, has been significant on our business," a Canada Post spokesperson said. "Since the union restarted their strike action in May 2025, once the collective agreements expired, we have lost almost 60 percent of our business." Canada Post's market share plunged to 26.7 percent in 2024 from 62 percent in 2019, according to the company's annual report, despite a post-pandemic e-commerce boom in deliveries. It lost $208 million due to last year's 32-day strike. "If CUPW's contract slug-fest drags on, Canada Post's share could drop into the teens by December 2026," Schulman added.
Canada News.Net
09-07-2025
- Business
- Canada News.Net
Labour unrest at Canada Post drives retailers to private rivals
OTTAWA, Canada: With Canada Post struggling to maintain operations amid labour unrest, rivals like FedEx and UPS are stepping in to fill the gap. UPS, FedEx, and other private parcel carriers are busy cornering a bigger share of the nearly US$17 billion Canadian delivery market, while government-owned Canada Post copes with labor turmoil. Canada Post, the country's primary postal service, has been plagued by labor disruptions since last year, including during the peak holiday season as workers went on strike over pay. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), which represents Canada Post delivery personnel, initiated a nationwide overtime ban in May after contract negotiations failed. The repeated disruptions have prompted small businesses to turn to rivals and private carriers for timely deliveries, even if they are more expensive. "For retailers who can't afford to roll the dice on labor peace, their T-shirts and iPhone cases hop over to brown or purple vans (UPS/FedEx) at the first whiff of trouble," said Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at wealth management company Running Point Capital. Parcel giant FedEx told Reuters it expects "the circumstances at Canada Post may trigger an increase in demand for FedEx services." To handle the additional demand, the company may offer special rates, add delivery vehicles, rework routes, reallocate resources, and open temporary sorting centers. UPS declined to divulge its plans to boost capacity. Calgary-based Lisa Graham, who runs a small e-commerce business called YYC Beeswax, told Reuters her business relied heavily on Canada Post's affordable small-package rates for domestic shipments. However, after the business suffered some losses during last year's holiday season strikes, Graham turned to UPS and FedEx to keep deliveries running, and enlisted local courier services to supply domestic customers, who make up 70 percent of her sales. "Anything that's going to take over two days, we are spending extra to ship with them (private courier services)." Last year's strikes cost small and medium-sized businesses over $1 billion in lost sales, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business said. Michael Cox, who imports Irish sweaters, textiles, jewelry, and other goods from the UK to his Ottawa-based shop, said he had to halt business during last year's strikes, as Canada Post was its sole logistics provider, causing significant losses. The Canadian courier, express, and parcel market is valued at $16.74 billion and could hit $21.55 billion by 2030, according to Mordor Intelligence. "The impact of the ongoing uncertainty, including last year's strikes, has been significant on our business," a Canada Post spokesperson said. "Since the union restarted their strike action in May 2025, once the collective agreements expired, we have lost almost 60 percent of our business." Canada Post's market share plunged to 26.7 percent in 2024 from 62 percent in 2019, according to the company's annual report, despite a post-pandemic e-commerce boom in deliveries. It lost $208 million due to last year's 32-day strike.
