For DePodesta to succeed somewhere, he'll need ownership that supports him fully, something he obviously didn't get in L.A. Initially, he seemed just what McCourt needed -- someone who could get results while cutting the payroll, necessary because of all the money McCourt borrowed to buy the team. But McCourt was, alas, just another guy in it for the image boost. If everything about your franchise is PR, then simply being a whipping boy in the media is enough to get a GM fired, whether or not the whipping was deserved.
There's one other thing DePodesta will need. Overcoming the ingrained resistance within baseball to Full Moneyball requires a lot of internal educating and, if necessary, force. Both Sandy Alderson (ex-Marine) and Billy Beane (ex-major leaguer who can throw temper tantrums with the best) were able to bend the A's to their will. DePodesta didn't, or couldn't, in L.A. That's something HE must do in his next job. You can't lead if no one's following.