Brock in high spirits after amputation that saved his life

St. Louis Cardinals great and legendary base thief Lou Brock may not move like he once did after having a section of his left leg amputated in October, but he's joyful despite his loss.

"Today is the day you have to make a decision - to keep the foot - or throw it away in the dumpster," Brock joked to Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Thursday.

Brock had his left leg amputated several inches below the knee in October due to an infection related to diabetes.

"It was a whirlwind. It just came on and it took us places we never had been before," said his wife Jackie, adding that her husband's life "definitely was in danger."

The 76-year-old Brock will be fitted for a prosthetic and has complete movement and flexibility of his knee, which he hopes will make walking easy.

He still plans to attend the Cardinals' Opening Day ceremonies on April 11.

Brock was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1985 after hitting .293/.343/.410 with 149 home runs, 900 RBIs, and 938 stolen bases. His stolen base total is the second most in baseball history behind only Rickey Henderson.