Tropicana Entertainment LLC has decided to put one of its riverboat casinos on the auction block after delaying for months a proposed $220 million sale.

The company is seeking approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., to remarket the Evansville, Ind., Casino Aztar, which it has been trying to sell since late 2007.

Tropicana in March agreed to sell the casino to Reno, Nev., hotel and casino operator Eldorado Resorts LLC for $220 million, but filed for bankruptcy protection before the sale could close. The future of the casino has been in limbo ever since. Eldorado earlier this month asked a judge to force Tropicana to decide whether it wanted to sell the assets.

In the end, it didn't take the order of a judge to get Tropicana to set its sights formally on selling the casino. The company Friday asked for permission to put the asset on the auction block, with the hope of generating a higher bid than Eldorado's March offer.

"The whole profile of the company is dramatically different than when we entered into that agreement," Tropicana Chief Executive Scott Butera said in an interview Friday. "We've tried to correct a lot of the things that weren't working."

The biggest change for the company has been the ousting of owner William J. Yung III last month under a settlement with creditors. Mr. Yung was found unfit to run Tropicana's Atlantic City, N.J., casino in December, prompting the state to strip the company of its gaming license.

With a new management team in place, Mr. Butera is hoping that would-be buyers of the Indiana casino will view the company in a more attractive light.

Mr. Butera confirmed that Tropicana's financial advisers from investment bank Lazard Freres & Co. are beginning to reach out to potential buyers. If another bidder beats Eldorado's $220 million offer, the Nevada company will receive $6.6 million in breakup fees plus up to $500,000 in expense reimbursements.

The bankruptcy court is set to consider the auction request Sept. 16. Tropicana wants to hold the auction the week of Nov. 10, followed by a Nov. 18 sale hearing. Mr. Butera wouldn't indicate the price the company is hoping to reach for the casino, but he said Tropicana is considering keeping the casino if the auction results are disappointing.

"I think if we're not able to get a value we think is fair then we would be prepared to" maintain ownership of the casino, he said. "At this point, our commitment is to see if we can try to get a fair value for the property."

Write to Rachel Feintzeig at rachel.feintzeig@dowjones.com