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Washburn didn't used to have a sinking fastball.  I don't know if I'm just imagining this, but based on Washburn's own comments and on my perception of what I'm seeing, his groundball rate is up because he's getting more drop on his 2-seamer (he has two fastballs...the 88 mph 2-seamer and the 90 mph rising 4-seamer) ...did you notice in last night's game how in the first several innings he was 8 flyballs, 2 Ks, and 3 grounders (a more typical Washburn game) and then by the end of the game it finished at 11 ground balls, 13 flies and 3 Ks?  Well check the location on his fastballs...he took the high fastball out of his bag when ti got smoked into left field a few times in a 2-inning span (3rd and 4th) and went to the sinker more and more...resulting in a shift to grounders.  In other words...he DOES have a new pitch...but it's not a new pitch you can find by looking at the Pitch F/X output.  Pitch F/X isn't going to see his 2-seamer as a differen tpitch than his fastball so you can't tell if he's throwing it more, and since he still uses the high fastball enough to keep batters honest and out in front of his offspeed pitches, you can't really see it in location diagrams either.
Maybe there is extra oomph, but I am not nervous about Washburn holding up as a solid #3 pitcher for the next few years, though I would not extend him byond 2012 and I would not extend him before I exhausted all efforts to extend Bedard.