Rankin grew up in Washington DC, in a room he shared with his two brothers, with whom he pored through the 200-pound Baseball Encyclopedia, and devoted himself to the hopeless, and now-extinct Washington Senators.

 After several years of cogitation, rumination, and circumnavigation, Rankin began a career as a sports reporter for the New York Press, back when it was fun. He contributes to both the Village Voice and the New York Times. He has won numerous awards, including "Best Friend of 1996", given only once, from one of his good friends.