It was announced today that Duke head baseball coach (and former player) Sean McNally has resigned as coach effective immediately. Edwin Thompson (one of McNally’s assistants) will take over in the interim until a replacement is named.

He had been the Blue Devils head coach since 2006 (he was named head coach in the summer of 2005) and had four straight winning seasons from 2007-2010.

The team’s best season came in 2009, when the team went 35-24 overall and 15-15 in the ACC (which was a school record for conference wins). Duke reached the ACC Tournament for the first time since 2005 and finished seventh in the standings.

His 192 career victories is third-most in the history of the team.

McNally was a four-year starter in his career and was team captain over his final two seasons. He was an All-ACC selection in his senior season (1994) and set a single-season record for batting average (.408).

Here is what McNally had to say:

“I would like to thank Duke University and Duke Athletics for the amazing opportunity to have served as the head baseball coach at my alma mater for the last seven years,” said McNally. “I am very proud of all that we have accomplished on the field, in the classroom, and in the community during my tenure. The effort to become a consistent winning baseball program in Atlantic Coast Conference play has been exhausting and the results have been disappointing. I am looking forward to spending more time with my family and seeking out a new professional challenge going forward. My biggest thank you goes to all of my players for their hard work and incredible effort. I will miss the daily interactions with the players and participating in their personal and athletic development the most.”

I met McNally back when he was playing baseball in the KC Royals organization with the High-A Wilmington Blue Rocks. He was a great guy then and loved his time playing at Duke.

However coaching at Duke is tough, considering the program hasn’t been great over the years and money isn’t eagerly spent on it. He dug the program out of a hole but never got over the hump, which is tough considering some of the powerhouses that are in the ACC that spend money on their programs.

*Check out what Baseball America’s Aaron Fitt had to say about McNally HERE.