THIS COACH ALSO BIG FAN; NATHANSON TO STEER STARS.

Byline: Heather Gripp Daily News Staff Writer

Rick Nathanson's seat will be in the dugout for Saturday's Bernie Milligan All-Star Baseball Game, but at heart he won't be viewing the game much differently than the fans in the stands.

``Even though I'm a coach, I'm also a fan,'' said Nathanson, who, along with Chatsworth coach Tom Meusborn, will guide the West all-stars. ``It's exciting to see the good players, even if it's just all-star games. That's what keeps me going. That's my postseason.''

Coaching has been a part of the Calabasas High skipper's life for many years.

While most children thinking about a future in baseball dream of hitting game-winning home runs or pitching a perfect game, a young Nathanson envisioned a more realistic future with the sport: coaching.

``I had always had an interest in (coaching),'' said Nathanson, whose Toluca Little League days included a season on the team organized by the namesake of this weekend's all-star game. ``Believe it or not, as far back as about 12 years old I was thinking about it. I just kind of gravitated toward that.''

That's not to say he didn't remain active as an athlete. He spent three years playing baseball and football at Grant High before a knee injury, suffered while playing football for Valley College in 1966, ended his post-high school career after ``all of about six plays,'' he said.

``Even if I couldn't be an active player anymore, I wanted it to be a part of my day and what I do,'' said Nathanson, who honed his coaching skills as a physical education and English major at UC Santa Barbara. The father of two says he keeps in shape by a variety of outdoor sports.

Nathanson, who also teaches English at Calabasas, began his second stint as the Coyotes varsity baseball coach in 1992 as co-coach with Scott Drootin, who now coaches at Chaminade. It was during that period that the foundation of winning was established.

``We both expect a lot out of our teams,'' Nathanson said. ``One of the highlights was being able to coach with Scott, as well as put Calabasas on the map baseball-wise. There's a lot of pride in that.''

Among Nathanson's fondest memories is the 1996 season, which he described as a ``dream year.'' Calabasas won 25 games in a row that year while dedicating the season to former player Sam Rutherford, who died during the fall as a freshman at UC Santa Barbara.

``The players just started to believe there was a little extra spirit with us,'' Nathanson said. ``They took the banner (that was made in honor of Rutherford) with us and put it in the dugout and they just kept on going. Bang, one game after another. That year, and the players believing. . . . There's so many things that can beat you, and all the ways we found to win, it really was a special year.''

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1) no caption (Rick Nathanson)

(2) Calabasas coach Rick Nathanson, who once played for Bernie Milligan, after whom the Daily News All-Star game is named, hits fly balls and pals around with Chatsworth Tom Meusborn at a West team practice.

Michael Owen Baker/Daily News