Trade deadline possibilities, part two: Backup infielders?

It sure sounds like Alex Cora may have fallen out of favor with the Red Sox brain trust. How else to interpret the rumblings that the team has been pursuing veteran shortstops to help back up Jed Lowrie in Julio Lugo's absence?

Cora's defense hasn't been too good this year, and with Lowrie hitting well, there's no real role for him. The Red Sox already have backed away from a trade that would have netted them Juan Uribe - a good move, since Uribe is brutal offensively and not as good defensively as he used to be. Slightly more intriguing: John McDonald, who is also a weak hitter, but did rank third in at least one defensive metric last year. In that same SoSH thread, someone indicates that Peter Gammons was throwing that possibility out there. Jack Wilson is another name that's been linked to the Red Sox at various points in the past, but Jayson Stark reports that the Pirates' asking price is high. 

Our preference? Give the keys to the position to Lowrie and let him play. We wouldn't be the first AL East team to field a poor defensive shortstop or anything.