The "long hair, beards, and chains" isn't about the long hair, beards, or the chains. It's about "what are you focused on, yourself and all the peripheral bullshit, or the team, the game of baseball, and the goal of winning the last game of the season?" It's about cutting out distractions. It's about putting everyone on the same page so there are no individuals or competing interests, only a single cohesive unit pushing toward the same goal.*
It's no different in the military and/or other paramilitary organizations. You don't get to be an individual until you get to the top. And even then, nobody's focused ON being an individual; they just aren't as focused on NOT being an individual. <--- There is a huge difference between those two things. . And when you're at the bottom or in the middle, that decision/distinction is made for you so you can worry about/focus on other things.
*In the case of Texas Baseball, it's also probably a little bit about representing the University of Texas at Austin. Texas Longhorns represent the University of Texas. UT isn't some podunk, half-ass school. It's a top tier university, nationally and globally, and one of the top public universities in the country. There's more to UT than sportsball. Nobody even thinks about LSU or Mississippi State as universities, only as athletic programs. They are the Tigers/Bulldogs and nothing else.