Quote:
Originally Posted by dash_riprock
There is no requirement to disengage prior to an appeal.
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Dash, I found an older edition of Make The Right Call 1994. It has casebook annotations for the (then) American and National Leagues. In the discussion about appeals, it always refers to the pitcher as getting set and then stepping off. As written, it seems to describe the steps required to put the ball back I'm play from the mound (and to distinguish it from a pick-off throw to an unoccupied base which I think is what they called a balk on Pettitte - incorrect as that call was).
ETA: the purpose of stepping off is to reduce the chance of actually balking while making the appeal which would negate it. As you stated, it is not a requirement.