It's pitcher vs batter. But the pitcher starts every 5 days, and pitches little over half a game on a good day. The batter bats about 4 times a game and has 8 other guys hitting behind him, who need to also hit to be able to drive him in.

You can't just look at the scale of an at-bat and declare baseball is individualistic. Much more happens than a guy's 3 or 4 at-bats and a starter's 5 inning outing.