(J.C. Rice)
HOME TEAM: Many Mets players and families live in this LIC building and its sister high-rise, including David Wright’s fiancée, Molly Beers (right, with Wright), and Leah Niese (left), wife of lefty Jon Niese. (
)
They’re the kings of Queens.
Blue-collar Mets stars have forsaken Yankee-style Manhattan condos to pitch their tents in two rental buildings on the Long Island City waterfront — a 20-minute drive or quick No. 7 train jaunt to Citi Field.
Neighborhood sources said the young players, along with manager Terry Collins, are concentrated in a shimmering 39-story building along the East River, where rents range from $2,200 to $6,000 a month, and a 32-story sister skyscraper two blocks away.
“We all live in Long Island City together, we all live in the same apartment building — so it’s nice for the wives to be able to lean on each other,” said Leah Niese, wife of the team’s lefty ace Jon Niese.
The blond stunner told The Post her posse includes KariAnn Gee, pitcher Dillon Gee’s wife; Megan Parnell, reliever Bobby Parnell’s better half; Tori Murphy, Daniel Murphy’s wife; Karen Francisco, pitcher Frank Francisco’s wife; Diana Baxter, right fielder Mike Baxter’s spouse; and Molly Beers, the model fiancée of superstar David Wright.
“When the guys go for a long road trip, we can stay with each other, and we’re right there if we ever need anything,” she said.
Building sources told The Post that players who have recently moved into Avalon’s Riverview North include left fielder Jordany Valdespin, catcher John Buck, second baseman Justin Turner, along with a slew of rookies.
“They’re cool — they talk to us when they see us,” said one Avalon worker. “They’re just settling in now . . . They come every year, just for the season.”
Amenities include a ninth-floor pool, a rooftop garden with barbecue grills, a 24-hour concierge, a gym and even a doorman who sources said also moonlights as an usher at Citi Field.
The other high-rise, the Avalon Riverview — where rents range from $2,300 to $5,200 — is similarly outfitted, and counts Wright as a onetime resident, sources said.
Still, Metsville is a far cry from the white-shoe digs of their hated crosstown rivals, like Derek Jeter, who sold his Trump World Tower penthouse for $15.5 million, and Alex Rodriguez, who lives in The Aldyn, an Upper West Side rental where monthly rents can cost as much as a new car — $18,900.
Players kick back at bistros along tony Center Boulevard. “Shi and Skinny’s are the best,” gushed Leah Niese.
“Being in Long Island City is a lot easier because we’re not in Manhattan so it’s not crazy, but at the same time, we still have the city life one subway stop away,” she added.
To keep looking great, the gals — and Collins — go to Emily Salon and Spa, where manicures run $15, a leg wax is $50, and a men’s haircut starts at $30.
“The guy with the gray hair — the manager — he just came back,” a hairstylist at the shop said. “He’s a good customer!”
Residents say LIC has become an Amazin’ enclave.
“There aren’t too many areas of Queens where celebrities are living,” said Andrew Kleinberg, a portfolio manager and neighborhood blogger. “It adds cachet, and that’s hard to get here.”
Additional reporting by Kevin Sheehan and Jennifer Gould Keil