In fact, it would be better to seek an appointment with the consulate closer to the date of expiry of your 2 year HRR. Otherwise, the consulate may just ask you to come back later.
In any case, you may not be able to enter the US till your HRR is over and I don't think applying for a waiver at this stage would be feasible, considering just a few months remain.
So I think it would be better to wait as you never know how the consular officer may react.