Slightly under the radar, LHP Darin Gorski has put together a solid season for the AA Binghamton Mets.

Overall, he is 9-7 with a 3.66 ERA (where league average is 3.90) with a 2.4 K/BB ratio (where 2.2 is league average).

In the first half, he had a 3.89 ERA with a 1.9 K/BB ratio (66 K/34 BB) in 88 innings. In eight starts after the All-Star Break, he trimmed his ERA to 3.26 while increasing his K/BB to 3.3 (50 K/15 BB) in 49.2 innings. Notably, he has improved on both sides of that key ratio: his strikeout rate has risen, from 18% in the first half to 24% in the second half, while his walk rate has fallen from 9% in the first half to 7% in the second half.

Gorski told Lynn Worthy of the Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin:

“Some of my mistakes in the middle of the year had to do with not being able to find the strike zone, falling behind guys, walking guys, stuff like that,” Gorski said. “I put myself in a hole. Recently, I’ve been more around the strike zone. I make mistakes inside the strike zone sometimes, but for the most part you stay as close as you can to the zone and try to keep the ball down. That’s the biggest thing.”

At ESPNNY, Gorski told Adam Rubin:

“I feel now, as opposed to the start of the year, I’m more polished and I have a better understanding what I’m trying to do with my pitch set and what I like to do when I go out there,” Gorski said. “I definitely feel a lot more comfortable than at the start of the year, so I take that as a positive.”

Home runs remain Gorski’s major statistical red flag. He’s allowed 19 HR in 137.2 innings this year (1.2 HR/9; 3%).

Gorski has clearly done enough to earn a promotion to AAA Buffalo for the 2013 season. From there, it might be a a short hop into the back end of a big league rotation.